Best Served Cold
by Elv
Summary: Meeting someone in a dark alley isn't your ideal place to meet the love of your life, especially when he tried to rape you. But that's how I met Natsume Hyuuga. AU #9
1. Red Velvet Cake & Martini

**Best Served Cold**

**_Chapter One_** : _of Red Velvet Cake & Martini_

**Disclaimer:** You know the drill. I don't own Gakuen Alice, but I do own the idea of Natsume feeding me with red velvet cake and martini.

Credits to _Vione_ and the _Hopeless Wanderlust_ for helping me a lot while writing this fic. **Enjoy!**

**by Mich.**

_Splash splash splash splash._

I didn't know how long I had run. Without myself realizing, I had been running towards aimless directions across the heavy downpour. The torrent of rain blinded me from seeing clearly through the storm, and much I would like to be dry and clean, I was, unfortunately drenched in the sudden rainfall.

_Shit._

I cursed inwardly as I cleared through the rain, desperately searching for a shelter. The streets were unusually dark and gloomy, and I stopped for a moment to identify my location. To my horror, I had no idea where was I.

I looked towards my left – there was a dumpster at the end of dark alley, and to the right – another stack of rubbish bins inclined on the wet asphalt, emanating a foul smell. I pinched my nose in disgust, not bothering anymore about the rain – considering I was already soaking wet, and tried to search a path which would lead me to the main street.

The piece I was wearing was not of any help either. It stuck to my body like glue, making it harder for me to run, or even walk. I sighed and looked around me.

No clue. _Double shit._

And then I heard something. A groan.

I was petrified, not sure on how to act. I was in a dark alley, alone, and there was a groan – a man's groan. I looked around, trying to find the source of the sound, but I couldn't see anybody around.

"Don't turn around," a harsh voice said.

The voice was tantalizing and I was terrified, but not because of fear. The voice was seductive even though it was a little harsh, and I found myself submitting to his order. "W-Who are you?" I asked, my voice trembling a little.

"Just follow my order and you won't be hurt," he said, his voice sending shivers down my spine.

"W-What? A-Are y-you going to kill me?" I asked, wanting to turn around but knowing that he had ordered me not to do so.

"I won't...if you promise to be a good girl," he cooed. He was really close to me; I could hear him breathing near my ears. "Now, will you promise to be a good girl?"

I found myself nodding slowly, and I felt his hand touching my arm.

I stiffened at the cold touch, my heart thumping at an abnormal rate as his fingers slowly trailed down my right arm.

"Your skin is so smooth." He whispered as he breathed in my hair, "and you smell good."

And then suddenly, his arms snaked around my waist and I yelped in surprise. "Hush." He muttered, and he pushed me harshly against the wall – his front touching my back.

It may sound really ridiculous considering the situation I was in, I found myself turned on. Even though I couldn't see his face, neither at least a slight description of the person, his voice was enough to make me melt.

What he said after that completely caught me off-guard. "Take off your clothes."

"A-Are you going to rape me?" I sputtered at his firm statement. He merely chuckled – an eerie one. His monotonous laugh made me shifted uncomfortably.

"I said don't move. Take off your clothes, now." His voice suddenly rang with authority.

Forget his sexy voice. Forget his hot breath fanning against my neck. Forget –

_STRIP_

_Please tell me I'm hallucinating._

I felt the raindrops fell on my bare shoulder, the cold tingling sensation sent me trembling as I took realization of what just had happened.

_He tore my white blouse off._

"Though how much I'd love to see you in that white piece, wet and sticking onto your body like a transparent plastic," he hissed, "I prefer to see you topless."

I knew this was sexual harassment – he was going to rape me for Shit's sake, but I just stood still – like a statue, not knowing what to do. It was like – every movement he makes – every word he says, made something in my heart go haywire.

But I knew I was a goner when he slipped his left hand into my white skirt, his right hand holding up my right arm and cuffing it firmly.

"P-Please…" I pleaded. He chuckled darkly again. "I love it when you begged me. I promise I will be gentle."

I saw the gray clouds started to gather above us, glooming the already dimly-lighted alley, the rain threatened to pour more. Then it came – the thunder.

"Aaahh!" I shrieked. I heard him clicking his tongue and effortlessly slapped my lips with his hand, preventing me from making any noise.

"Tsk tsk tsk." He hissed, "A scaredy-cat, are you?"

He swiftly turned me and pushed my back harshly against the wall, his cold hand still in contact with my dry and broken lips. His palm smelt of dirt and mud, and I tried my hardest to swallow my puke down my throat.

_Nasty._

I struggled in disgust, and I heard him murmuring something incoherent as he gripped my shoulder tightly.

Another lightning struck, and this time, I had a clear look of his face.

No, I mean— they were _crimson_.

_Such captivating eyes._

I felt my breath stopped when he crashed his lips against mine. Despite his cold and dirty hands, his lips were warm and sweet. I found myself drowning into his rough and passionate kiss. My hands unconsciously reached towards the back of his head, ruffling his soft hair as his lips moved irrevocably on mine.

Then he stopped. He grabbed a handful of my brunette hair and pulled it up gently, exposing my neck. His face moved towards my skin, and sucked on it. I moaned at the pleasure and the sensation running through my veins. It was something I have never felt before, but it just felt so damn good.

I didn't know who he was or what his name was, so all I could do was to allow his hand to travel around my upper body. "You like it, don't you." He whispered at my ears, and I swear I could feel him mocking my submission.

"Tell me your name." he demanded.

I hesitated, but when he brushed his nose against my swollen neck, a tingling sensation came running through my skin. "Sa-Sakura…"

"Sakura?" he prompted as he slowly licked the red spots he left me with.

"Sakura… Mikan…"

"Mikan." He whispered my name seductively. "Would you give me this honour?"

_My pleasure_, was what I wanted to say—until something _rudely_ interrupted our session.

I heard him curse before pressing the green button, "Ruka."

I frowned. The name didn't suit him, _at all_.

"I need to go." He released me from our compromising position. He then neared me, a soft murmur ensued, "I would love to continue our session, _soon_."

I didn't realize the rain had stopped until he threw me his jersey. "I was just playing. It was fun seeing you scared and all. Bye."

And he left. I was half-naked, drenched, and only a sweaty shirt in my hands.

I cursed my life.

* * *

**Enjoyed?**

_Green button please :)_


	2. Chocolate Éclairs & Strawberry Cocktail

**Best Served Cold**

_**Chapter Two:**_ _of __Chocolate Éclairs__ and __Strawberry Cocktail_

**Disclaimer:** You know the drill.

**by Mich**

"Wake up you arse!"

I groaned as the human whom invaded my room flipped open the curtains and I cursed inwardly at the sunlight which was cruel enough to make me wake up from my sweet dream.

_Sweet dream, right._

"Five more minutes!" I covered my head with my comforter as I turned to the other side of the bed. I heard thumping footsteps approaching the edge of my bed before a hand rudely grabbed off the only shield I had against the blinding light. "No! It's already noon, now wake up!"

"Anna! It's Sunday! Give me back my comforter!"

I flopped the pillow on my head, still groaning at the sudden wake-up call.

"No. Get up now or I'll fry you."

"But!" I retorted as I kicked the air.

"No buts missy! Shower up and we're heading to the shop." She said sternly. When I nodded at her, she threw the comforter on my head and I immediately snuggled in it. She then left the room with a huff, "Ten minutes!"

_Anna. Shut up._

"What did you say?" her voice echoed across the hallway.

"I didn't say a word!" I lazily climbed down from my comfy bed and walked long strides towards my closet.

_It was a Sunday, damn it._

I rummaged through my pieces and picked a striped inner wear, a black cardigan, the lingerie and my towel and walked into the washroom – with yawns.

**_TURN_**

The hot water came splashing down from the shower and I felt instantly refreshed.

And oh, the dream I was talking about just now? It was nothing near sweet. Maybe it was, a little. I mean, it was real incident kept playing back in my mind. It was raining heavily, I lost myself in one of the dark alleys, I met up with a gorgeous guy – whom intended to rape me until we were interrupted by a phone call, the worst thing was – I loved every second of it. And it was a miracle I even got out safe into the main street still wearing the sweaty jersey he threw at me.

Speaking of the jersey, it was long gone when I studied overseas. Either I misplaced it or the landlady just simply threw it away before I moved.

_Darn that landlady._

I used to live in the rural areas of Kyoto, together with Anna. It was our hometown. I was born an orphan so I pretty much lived an independent life for the past twenty-four years. We furthered our studies in France before returning and moving to Tokyo to start our business. We built it from scratch, and a year had passed, and it was not easy at all.

I placed my forehead on the wall, the liquid still showering my hair. Every time when I remembered the incident, I couldn't help but blush at it. The guy was hot – he was practically over me, and the next thing I knew, before anything happened, he had to leave. Just great. So much for a cliffhanger.

But I just couldn't erase that memory from my mind. His voice, his touch – _everything_!

I touched the skin on my neck, and remembered how he left hickeys on it. I remembered how his warm lips brushed through my skin and sucked on it. The spots were visible for a few days, and I had to cover them up either by wearing a scarf or a turtle-neck during summer. Even Anna said I was insane – wearing those kinds of clothes during hot days, but she didn't know, and she will never know.

I turned off the tap and dried myself with the towel. The only clue I had about him was Ruka and his alluring crimson eyes. That's all. Search for him? Quite impossible. It's been – _4 years to be precise!_

My name is Sakura Mikan. I work in catering centre, whereby I'm the official patisserie while Uenomiya Anna – who is also my housemate – does the cooking and catering. We were childhood friends, and we had this dream of opening our very own catering since we were very young. Hence we studied abroad when we were nineteen, together. She learnt Culinary Arts, while I learnt about making pastries. It was fun, no doubt, but managing a shop was much more of a hassle than I had ever thought.

"Mikan! Breakfast!"

I would never miss her breakfast – the reason being stated earlier. Her meals were too delicious to ignore, and any food critic whom tasted her dishes were either amazed or just simply fainted. And no, I am not exaggerating.

"Coming!" I quickly changed into my clothes and walked towards dining room. We live in a simple apartment. Somewhere we could call home. We have three rooms – one for me, one for Anna, and just another guest room. Anna's best friend during college, who is also her cousin – Nonoko, used to hang around at night or even sleepovers – but now, I guess she was busy with her own work, as much as how Anna and I were immersed in ours too.

Anna was a half-orphan. Her father died when she was at the tender age of six. He left his family with riches which not even Anna's mother knew about. Even though they were wealthy, they were never arrogant or boastful. To me, both Mrs. Uenomiya and Anna are people who are simple and down-to-earth.

_Anna must have inherited that trait from her mother_, I smiled to myself.

"Bacon and eggs." Anna commented as she placed the said food on the plates. I smiled at her, wondering what recipe she came up again this time. I munched on the crispy meat and a beautifully-fried egg, which I meant, the yolk is still perfect. It is a skill every chef has to master, that is, to break an egg without damaging the density and viscosity of the yolk, which includes not breaking the yolk membrane and letting it spread into the egg white.

"Classic." I commented. The bacon was fine meat with mouth-watering texture, while the eggs were just – perfect.

_Sometimes, simplicity is just the thing to start your day._

"Oh by the way, just to review again, correct me if I'm wrong, the Suzi couple wants Éclair as the dessert for their wedding this Wednesday. Five hundred pieces. Is that alright with you?"

I rolled my eyes at her. "Could I say no?" and she grinned at me – the one I didn't like most, "You wouldn't dare."

Anna always had this thing – in my opinion – to get things the way she wants, I mean, at least for me. She either goes really scrawny or she would just look at me without those innocent eyes. Gah.

"Mikan." I looked at her as I took a long sip from the cup of hot chocolate.

"Nonoko is inviting us over for dinner. At the newly refurbished Café de Pastries."

I scowled at the idea of hanging out there. I didn't like eating pastries there. They suck. Incidentally, it is Nonoko and Anna's favourite place, and I'd always give in to the latter's pleads.

"Come on. I know they don't serve better pastries than you do, but it's a rare chance! I mean, we're always busy and all, and tonight we finally have the time to hang out!"

I scoffed and shrugged my shoulders.

_So much for being friends_.

I nodded reluctantly, and she beamed at me. "It seems like she's bringing someone else too."

I cocked my head, "Who?" and she just shrugged, "her boyfriend perhaps?"

And I swear I saw Anna's eyes glinted in a weird way.

-

"Hustle Mikan! We're running late!" Anna yelled as she hurriedly locked the doors securely.

"Shut up Anna! I'm trying to finish off the 176th piece!" I hollered at her impatiently. The wedding was just around the corner, and I had just finished a quarter of the dessert count. Yes, I was making desserts for the Suzi couple since all day – and I had only finished that much.

_Screw distraction._

"Come on, you can do it tomorrow!" she bellowed as she stuffed her keys and purse into her handbag, "Now clean yourself up and we're going."

"Fine." I muttered and pushed trays of Éclair into the refrigerator. After cleaning up myself and the kitchen, I found Anna tapping her feet rather impatiently on the pavement. I threw her a 'sorry' look and she immediately dragged me down the street.

Café de Pastries was exactly as its name implied. A pastry cafeteria. Even though I find the pastries there distastefully rotten – that just shows how much I disliked theirs – I find myself standing in front of it.

_Oh, the irony._

"Oh I see her!" I saw a lady waving back at us. Beside her was another guy, also smiling at us as we walked into the cafeteria.

"Over here!" Anna rushed to embrace Nonoko, who look like lost sisters' just getting reunited.

Oh did I mention before, Anna looks almost identical to Nonoko. Their mothers are sisters. Anna has fuschia wavy hair which drops below her chest with green eyes, while Nonoko has –

"You cut your hair!"

I crooned my head towards the latter, and saw that she indeed has cut her hair – short. Her navy blue hair was just an inch above her shoulder, and the ends were curled beautifully.

"In fact I did. Thanks to him." Nonoko playfully pinched the man's cheek as she grinned at us.

_Sometimes, having a boyfriend is just so sweet._

"Ouch, Ogasawara!"

"Ogasawara?"Anna and I asked simultaneously.

"Whoa there. You both looked utterly confused." she chuckled, and her laughing session was joined in by the man.

"Hi there, I'm Andou Tsubasa." He stretched his hand for a handshake, and I obliged. "My father is Ogasawara's mother's brother. We weren't really that close until recently we met up in a restaurant near my workplace. It was a chance meeting, really. And I'm still used to using Ogasawara. Sorry, I'm trying."

"It's okay Tsubasa. No biggie." Nonoko patted the man's back, and truth to be said, if we didn't know them, I would have thought they were a lovely couple.

I scrutinized the man, his hair is a shade darker than Nonoko's – how could I not notice, their hair were almost the same color! – his eyebrows were manicured evenly – matching the shape of his dark blue eyes, his sharp jawline and high cheekbones were structured in a way they fit perfectly on his face, and his lips were moist and carefully taken care of. And I must say – he's hot.

"You're a model, aren't you?" I started, and he looked stunned before flashing a wide grin at me. "Nice observation."

"But what's with bandage?" I asked pointedly at the patch below his left eye.

"Oh –" Nonoko cut in, "Just some scar he didn't want to show to other people." and he seconded that.

"Can we order now?" Anna asked lazily as she browsed through the menu. "I want chocolate mousse."

I frowned at the girl. "If you want chocolate mousse, I can make you better ones at home." I said dryly.

"Shut up Mikan, I want my dose of chocolate, now." She glared at me, "Waiter!"

I huffed in exasperation.

"So you're a chef?"

"Patisserie. Anna's the chef. We are managing a catering centre." I corrected him.

He looked awed, and we proceeded to order our own choices.

There's something about this guy. Yes, he looked charming and all, but – his flawless face, his built figure – reminds me of _that_ guy, again. As much as I wanted to see him again, nobody had any clue who he was, or where he stayed. Even the name _'Ruka'_ didn't ring a bell.

_He just vanished._

I gave up when the result of the searching came back empty. I don't want to sound so deranged, I mean, it's just a guy – someone I didn't even know – but well, he did say _see you soon_.

My terrain of thoughts was interrupted when Tsubasa looked at me worriedly. "Are you okay? You look pale." I didn't realize I was staring at him at the while.

"Oh–" I slightly shook my head, "It's nothing, I was just – thinking."

And I swear both Anna and Nonoko were giggling at me for gawking at the man. Yes, I did say he was hot, but he's definitely not my type, _I think?_

_I used to be love drunk, but now I'm hungover –_

"Oh excuse me." The man hurriedly took his phone and flipped it open. "Hello?"

I whirled my finger on the tip of the glass before taking a sip of my strawberry-flavored cocktail.

_Delicious._

"Oh hi – Ruka!"

I choked on my drink and nearly spurted the liquid out of my mouth. I slammed the glass on the table and held a hand on my neck. I coughed hard and felt that my throat was suffocating.

"Oh my goodness – Mikan!" Anna jumped up in surprise and quickly patted my back.

"Ruka – wait – I'm busy right now, I'll call you later. Are you alright?!"

He looked at me anxiously as he leaned over to give a hand on my back too. Now this is_ dramatic_.

He was so close to me and I found myself inhaling in his scent. And he surprisingly smelled good.

_Calvin Klein._

"I'm –I'm—" he continued patting my back, "I'm alright."

Oh, he answered as he stopped and composed himself on his seat. "Thanks." And he just smiled.

I shifted uncomfortably on my chair, contemplating whether I should ask the question or not.

"Uh—" I started, "- the guy you were speaking to just now?"

"You mean, Nogi Ruka?"

I nodded slowly, my legs still shifting in uneasy.

"Can I meet him?"

I knew it sounded so abrupt, even Anna and Nonoko looked stunned. And the frown on his face, the troubled look in his eyes didn't look much promising either.

_Can someone stop me before I embarrass myself further?_

* * *

I know it wasn't _that _intense compared to the first chapter, but well, hope you liked it!

**Green button**_ please_ :)


	3. Valentine Napoleon & Champagne

**Best Served Cold**

_**Chapter Three:**_ _of __Valentine Napoleon Pastry Hearts Strawberry Dessert & Orange Juice_

**Disclaimer:** You know the drill.

**by Mich**

"I can't believe you just did that!"

I looked at the girl dryly and wondered what on earth would make her shut up at that very moment.

"It's Harada Misaki you know?! _the_ Harada Misaki! And we're so gonna make so much money!"

I rolled my eyes at her enthusiasm as I was already exhausted and practically felt like all of my energy were drained out – _completely._ And yes, she had been prattling about the famous fashion designer Harada Misaki, which we – the girls and also Andou – coincidentally bumped into in the café.

"_Can I meet him?"_

_I knew it sounded so abrupt, even Anna and Nonoko looked stunned. And the frown on his face, the troubled look in his eyes didn't look much promising either. _

"_I don't think so…" Andou muttered softly._

_I lowered my head in disappointment, "I see…"_

_Then I heard female giggles from the other side of the café, and it made me look back up, and I heard a soft gasp escaped Anna's mouth._

"_It's Harada Misaki." I heard her say, as everyone turned their heads towards her direction. I cocked my head a little, momentarily forgetting my question, "Who?"_

"_Oh silly Mikan!" she exclaimed, "It's Harada Misaki! The famous fashion designer in the country!"_

_I nodded slowly, not really catching on what or who she just mentioned. _

"_I'll…" a voice started beside me – it was Andou. "I'll just go there and say 'hi'."_

"_You know her?!" Anna's soprano voice almost yelled._

"_Yeah," he scratched the back of his head, "…kinda, she's my colleague. Anyway, be right back."_

_My butterscotch eyes were fixed on the young lad as I saw him strode towards the Harada lady and tapped her shoulder. She, in return, flashed him a smile – a mesmerizing one._

"_He's amazing isn't him?" I felt Anna elbowing me. I narrowed my eyes at her. "What are you implying?"_

"_I mean, he is a model – already a plus point," my over-energetic friend started to count on her index finger, "—and he knows Harada Misaki! And plus he's hot! And don't you dare deny it!" she pointed an accusing finger at me._

_I sighed in exasperation as I saw Andou approaching our table, this time – with the Harada girl trailing behind him._

"_Hi there," she greeted, and on her lips was another beautiful smile. Her pink hair was braided neatly while she was dressed in a purple tank top and a pair of light blue jeans. No one would've expected that she is a famous fashion designer – according to Anna that is._

_I nodded in response and stretched out my arm to shake hands with her. "Sakura Mikan."_

_She replied with her name and asked whether it was okay for her to sit with us. As always, Anna – being thrilled than she was already – immediately said __**yes!**__ and took a stool for her to sit on._

"_Why thank you." she smiled gracefully as she did a signal to her girls that she would be over here with us if they needed anything. Her every movement was slender and feminine, her body poised and she sat truly like a star. And I thought Anna would have fainted if she was a guy._

"_Anyway, Sakura, I was just talking to Harada when I suddenly remembered about you and your catering services."_

_I looked at him with questioning eyes, while patiently waited for him to continue._

"_Harada is going to have her wedding soon – congratulations again by the way, and she had been searching for a suitable caterer – someone who could satisfy her fiancé's standards."_

"_P-Pardon?" I sputtered for words._

"_You see—" Nonoko cut in, "—the other day when I bumped into him, I was just walking a few blocks away from your shop. So when we finally sat down and talked, I offered him some of your pastries – and he said it was delicious. So I guess – he recommended?"_

_I snapped my head towards Anna's cousin, wishing she was just cracking a joke or pulling my leg. I mean – catering for a huge celebrity? __**You must be kidding me.**_

_To my horror, I saw Anna was already jumping up and down in glee while thanking her cousin. That notion immediately told our guests that – __**we're accepting her request.**_

"_Awesome. My fiancé is a really select person. He is actually a chef also, and he wanted to cook the dishes for his own wedding – but I insisted on him preparing himself for the ceremony instead. He reluctantly agreed – on one condition – the caterer we chose must fit to his taste buds, especially the pastries."_

"_**Fussy.**__" I muttered softly to myself, and to my surprise, I heard the lady chuckled._

"_He is." She admitted – and I blushed for making a fool of myself._

"_That – you have no problem my lady." Anna started to talk. "Mikan does the best pastries in the world!"_

_I elbowed her in annoyance and immediately asked her to lower down her voice, and she replied me with a small pout and a "Why, it's true!"_

"_Well, I guess since Andou's friends say so, my fiancé and I will be at your shop tomorrow morning at maybe – ten?"_

_Before I could say anything, Anna was already shaking Harada' hands and began ranting how she admired and idolized her, while the latter just tried to ignore her as much as she could._

_A chef with particular taste buds – I thought I was about to have a nightmare._

"Gah!" I suddenly said, startling Anna, "What??!—" she jumped in surprise.

"I forgot to ask her about her fiancé's name. I mean, she did say that he's a chef too. Then most probably he would have starred in food programmes or maybe he's one of the hot male chefs like Jamie Oliver."

And Anna rolled her eyes at me with disgust. "Go to sleep, Mikan. You're meeting him tomorrow anyway. Now get some sleep – tomorrow will be a long day. Good night."

"Night."

-

"Mikan, can you not break your alarm clock for once?"

I took my pillow and slapped it onto my right ear as I heard someone kept mumbling something.

"Mikan –" I heard she breathed in annoyance. "—I don't want to spoil the mood today cause' _we are_ meeting Harada Misaki and her fiancé today. So you better get up now or I'll leave you behind." She paused for a while before adding, "I'm not buying you another alarm clock."

I really hate waking up in the morning. Makes me _**cranky **_and all.

I reluctantly removed myself from my comfy bed, only to succumb to the temptation when I heard – _imagined_ the bed asking me to sleep on it.

"I really hate mornings." I groaned as the daily routine started.

-

The chiming bell from the entrance silently informed me of a presence in the shop.

"Welcome!" I called out from the kitchen as I washed my hands on the sink. Then I saw a head peeked out from the doors – yes, _Harada Misaki._

"Hiii!" She beamed at me as she approached me. I ushered her to sit on the couch – where the discussion with clients usually are held – "Where is your fiancé?"

"Oh –" she paused, "—he went to search for a parking spot. He asked me to start first. Is that okay with you?"

"Of course! Hold on, I'll bring you some sample menu lists and also – hold on." I muttered as I rummaged through my messy desk. "—Sorry! I'll be just right back!" and the bell chimed again.

_Great._

"—Ah, welcome! Please help yourself!" I paid no attention to newcomer until a disgruntled snort echoed across the room – the owner apparently wanted his presence made known.

"Natsume!" I heard Harada squeaked. I raised my head from the counter and looked at the man who had just entered my bureau.

I scrutinized his features. He is about – 6'1'' tall – his tight black T-shirt hugged his lean body, appreciating his firm and muscular build. My eyes trailed up from his slender chest up to the tip of his chin. I noticed his –

My terrain of thoughts was interrupted and my sight was distracted by a swift movement of his right hand. He griped in annoyance as he clumsily scratched his dishevelled jet-black hair. He squinted his eyes and stifled a yawn. "Is this how you treat your customers? How impolite."

I looked at the man disapprovingly as he slouched down on the couch beside the lady, who slapped his arm playfully while throwing me an apologetic look. I decided to dismiss the ignorant remark as I pulled out a brown file from the bottom of my scattered documents and approached the couple.

"So I assume this young man here is your fiancé?"

She nodded before adding in quickly, "Hyuga Natsume."

I glanced at the man beside Harada before scribbling down the personals on the paper. "Alright—"

"Can we start already?"

I swear I was about to explode if I hadn't thought about Harada Misaki being a celebrity and had the power to swipe the shop's reputation with just merely a word to the press.

I cleared my throat – still refusing to look at him – because I knew he had an annoyed look plastered on his face. I heard Harada muttering another apology and murmured something about being cranky in the morning.

I stifled a laugh as I myself knew how much I hated mornings.

"Excuse me-"

_Can this man stop talking for a second already!_

I took a heap of breath before curving a smile and throw him a half-annoyed look. "Yes?"

He looked up to me – he was surveying through the menu– and rasped, "What the heck is this?"

_Wait –_

"Are you Nogi Ruka?" I stared him – his eyes were… _too_ familiar.

"Ruka? Of course not! What are you talking about? And this—_this_ looks like rubbish!"

_Rubbish?_

"I beg your pardon?" I replied acidly, annoyance evident in my voice.

He breathed in before repeating his statement, "- I said this menu is not for humans! Let alone for a wedding!"

_I swear I was about to strangle his neck._

"Excuse me – if you are not satisfied with our menu or our services, then our apologies – please do search for a better caterer."

I huffed as I stared at his eyes. Despite the fact that his eyes were _**crimson**_, I couldn't bother much about it when he was criticizing us.

"Natsume!" Harada nudged him harshly, "-be polite! A trusty friend of mine recommended this place – and it must be a good place considering he reckoned it."

I saw him arched an eyebrow at his fiancée, "He?"

I stifled a chuckle, which made the man glare at me, "- Possessive much?"

He looked like he was about to hurl another insult, but before he could successfully carry out the act, Harada interrupted smoothly, "Natsume, we're taking this caterer whether you like it or not, and _no _buts! You have been blowing off countless of them and if this goes on, we'll be holding our wedding _**without**_ food and desserts!"

Hyuga grunted disapprovingly and muttered something about incompetency before sitting up and raised his index finger, "- Fine, on one condition."

"Spit it."

"You are to make me one dessert now. Anything will do. Misaki is probably going to attend to her fashion meetings, so she can't be here –" He glanced at her and Harada nodded truthfully, "-but I am free for today and I will stay around until you finish the dessert. I will then taste it and if it is appetizing enough for my standard, then I will sign a contract with you. Deal?"

I looked at him – he was jeering me with that annoying smirk – and boy, how I wanted to _rip_ that tug off his lips. "You're on."

He breathed out before slumping down on the couch. He perused his surroundings, "-Nice place though."

"Thank you for the decent remark-" I muttered sarcastically, "-oh by the way Harada, Anna will not be around today so are you sure you want to leave _**your**_ barbarian with me, _alone_, in this shop?"

Harada laughed heartily, "Trust me, he's _sooo _vulnerable."

Hyuuga slapped her arm playfully as he creased his forehead, "Hey- what is that supposed to mean!" and he laughed along.

For a moment there, I could hear my heart skipped a beat. I didn't know whether it was because the way he laughed was simply charming, or –

"Well, I suppose I'll get going now?"

Both Hyuga and I turned to look at the speaker – she started to pack her things and handed me her business card, "Call me if there's anything – or you can call Natsume too. Got to go -" And she swiftly pecked Hyuga's lips before leaving my shop. "-bye!"

"She's always busy." Hyuga muttered under his breath as he sighed softly. He played the tip of his tresses and twirled them with his finger.

"You're such a kid." I commented wryly and he shot a glare at me, "- I heard from Harada that you're a chef yourself. Are you sure you can just hang around here?" I gathered the files and walked towards the counter.

He grunted, "I'm a freelancer. I accept jobs when I want."

"Rich brat."

"What did you say?" he picked himself from the couch and approached me.

"I said I'm going to make you a dessert now-" I paused, "-now, what should I make for your occasion." I pondered for a while.

"Please not anything too sweet-" he requested as he propped his arms on the counter, "-my teeth hurts."

I laughed at his remark. _Boy this guy is different._

"How about strawberry-themed? I personally love strawberries."

I turned to look at him when he didn't say anything. He looked like he was thinking deeply. "Something wrong?" I asked.

"Oh-" he sputtered, "- it's just weird that I liked strawberries too. You have surprisingly good taste. I mean –"

"-I know," I interrupted him, "-strawberries are not that sweet and they are a little soury."

"_Exactly._" He seconded that with a small smile. He rested his chin on one of his propped arm and looked at me intently.

_Well, at least we are not fighting anymore._

"Alright. I've thought about the perfect dessert for your wedding - _Valentine Napoleon Pastry Hearts  
Strawberry Dessert._"

Hyuga had a disgruntled look on his face, "It's so cheesy."

I snorted at him, "Weddings _**are**_cheesy."

He chortled, "-couldn't agree more about that."

"Okay, I'm starting work now. So don't disturb if you could –" he scoffed and was about to leave the counter, "—but you can stay there. I don't mind people seeing me cook."

"Fine." He muttered and took a stool and sat on it.

I first took out a package of frozen pie crust from my freezer and let it thaw in the room temperature for half an hour under the fan as I turned on the oven for pre-heating.

Checking I had done the necessary preparations, I went to the counter and poured some juice for Hyuga. He nodded thankfully and took a few sips.

I removed my apron and walked into the lounge. It was in a mess.

_Anna must have not cleaned up after dealing with clients yesterday._

"Say –" a voice suddenly started, "—you said about someone named Anna just now? Your colleague?"

"Yeah—" I answered clumsily as I picked up the magazines and arranged them on the rack, "—she's my partner in this job, my housemate and my childhood friend."

"Clingy much?" he muttered as he took another sip of the juice.

"Just –" I reprimanded him, "—_**don't talk**_."

And he snickered at me.

I glanced at my wrist-watch and walked back into the counter. I realized Hyuga's glass was almost empty. "Another glass?"

He shook his head and prompted me to continue what I intended to do.

I reached for the dough slide and sprinkled some flour on it. The defrosted pie crust was then dropped on the slide and I scattered another handful of flour on it.

I pressed on the dough and began to massage it with little force. When it was soft enough, I fished out a roller from my utensils' rack and started to roll on the dough until the thickness was satisfactory. I grasped the cookie cutter and proceeded to make heart patterns on the crust. Pieces by pieces were sliced off the layer and were placed on a lined sheet pan.

I arranged the heart-shaped pieces side by side and slid the pan into the oven for 7 minutes.

"Cream cream cream… Where did I put the cream?" I muttered to myself as I searched around for the cream. I opened and closed every cabinet until –

"Got it! –" I beamed as I stretched my arm towards the cream package on the high cupboard. "Ugh— can't – reach – it – darn Anna and her model-like height!"

"Need some help?" a voice asked huskily behind me. Before I could say anything, I felt a shadow towering over me and beside my face was an arm stretched up – obviously belonged to person who just spoke.

"This one?" Hyuga asked as he extended his arm towards the package. I unconsciously breathed in and smelled his scent.

_**Armani. **_

_Wait, is it just me or did I keep sniffing people? Males, especially?_

I shuddered at his emanating warmth and his cologne. I nodded quietly and he swiftly took the box from the cupboard and passed it to me without a hitch. "Anything else you need help with?"

I glanced towards the oven and back to the cream. "Maybe you can help whip it?"

"No problem—" he answered crisply, "—where's the whipping bowl and the whisk?"

The oven rang, indicating the bread was fully baked. I opened the lid and used a clean cloth to pull the pan out and onto the counter. "It's in the second cupboard to the left."

"Got it—" Hyuga said as he took out the said utensils. "—that smells delicious."

He walked towards the counter and took a good look at the slightly-brownish baked pieces. "You bake well."

"Thank you." I smiled at him as I scooped a cup of cream from the package and poured it into the whipping bowl. He then grabbed the whisk and began to whip the cream. I gaped at his speed and skill.

"Wow." I blurted.

He looked at me with that proud smirk, "You ain't seen nothing yet." And with that – after whisking the soft cream a few more times – he overturned the bowl mid-air.

"Hey!" I shrieked at him and instinctively tried to grasp the bowl before the cream fell onto the ground.

_**Chime.**_

"Hey Mikan? Are you inside?"

I heard footsteps walking towards the counter before the voice ensued, "—I forgot to take my keys, and I—"

The voice stopped abruptly and I perceived a soft gasp before my name was called again. I looked up and saw Anna looking at me in disbelief. Then I heard a groan and my head snapped towards the source.

_**Shit.**_

"I'm terribly sorry!" I quickly picked myself up and apologized immediately to Hyuga. Apparently I was trying to get the bowl and I didn't really look in front and I knocked into him and landed on the floor - _with him._

I heard him muttering curses as he sat up on the floor – the bowl still in his hand – and rubbed the back of his head, "Darn that hurts!"

"I'm so sorry!" I bowed at him and offered a hand to him. He shrugged and clumsily took my arm and I pulled hard – and I almost felt like slipping backwards until I realized an arm was around my waist and was preventing me from falling.

_No way! I don't want to get involved in such a drama!_

"Whoa there. You're one clumsy girl are you?" After making sure I was standing properly, he released his arm and was quiet for a while. He then shoved the bowl of whipped cream to me, "Do you think it's still usable?"

I looked at him before laughing out loud. He looked confused at first, after that he joined my laughing streak.

"Can someone tell me what on earth just happened?" Anna asked confusedly, "—Anyway I really need to go, I'll just interrogate you tonight. Bye!"

I was still laughing and trying hard to catch my breath, and before I could wave at her, Anna already left the shop. "I think –" I looked at him, "—I'll just do the rest. You can stay at the lounge if you want."

"No. I'm staying here."

His answer was so abrupt that I snapped my head at him. "Excuse me?"

"I'm hungry." He stated bluntly and shrugged his shoulders.

I rolled my eyes at him before chuckling a little when I recalled the scene earlier. I took a glass plate from the cabinet and placed a piece of the heart-shaped on it. I used a table spoon to scoop some whipped cream and placed it on top of the baked crust. I proceeded to take out a packet of fresh strawberries from the refrigerator and cut them into slices. I carefully picked and put three slices of strawberry on top of the whipped cream and covered the bundle with another piece of baked bread.

I repeated the steps and did two layers for every piece of the dessert. For finishing touches, I sprinkled some powdered sugar on the final piece of the breads and topped them with a small piece of mint sprigs.

I added extra decorations on the plate by garnishing it with chocolate syrup. "Done!"

"Awesome." He muttered and slid beside me and uninvitingly took a piece. "Fascinating."

I smiled and took a piece myself. To say it was delicious was mere understatement. The cold strawberry slices blended perfectly with the slightly warm and dry baked bread while the texture of the cream was just… _flawless_.

_No wonder he could do freelancing. He did a really good job on whipping the cream!_

"Do you have - say - champagne?" He asked as he licked the whipped cream on his fingers.

_And that's sexy._

"Champagne? Why?" I asked as I looked around the beverages corner.

"This goes best with champagne. Perfect for a wedding - you really have creative taste - oh wait, I'll just get that myself."

He walked over to the side of the counter and took a bottle of champagne and – "Wait!"

It was too late, he spilled the champagne all over the floor when he opened the cork. "Shit." I heard him muttered.

I groaned as I stared at the wet floor. "Seriously, I don't feel like cleaning right now. So I'll just brush it later."

"No - stupid. Champagne leaves stains on the floor. Now just tell me where the cleaner and mop are"

I pretended to look offended. "Excuse me, are you saying me stupid? And it's in the washroom just behind you."

Hyuga looked at me annoyingly, "Alright then _smartie_, and you should thank me for cleaning this mess for you."

I stared at him with incredulity, "Are you nuts? You're the one who wanted to have champagne - and you're the one who splotched the floor by opening the bottle!"

"_Fine."_ he griped. "It's my fault. And I'll clean it. _Satisfied?_" He took the mop and blanched it with water before throwing it on the floor.

"Much bet- Hey! You splashed me!"

He threw me a _so-what_ look and continued rubbing the stain off the floor.

I cursed inwardly and reminded myself to not mess with him again. "Fine. I'll just have the last piece of –"

_Where did it go?!_

Hyuga scoffed at me as he slowly popped the last piece into his mouth – taunting me. He then smirked triumphantly as he chewed the dessert "I win."

"Bastard." I muttered as I took another tray of baked bread and began making the pastry again, while he continued scrubbing the floor.

-

I sat down lazily on the stool and took a sip of my champagne. "Long day."

"Yeah –" he paused as he glanced at the clock on my wall, "—it's almost six."

I nodded, "What time is Harada coming back?"

He merely shook his head, "I don't think she's coming back here – for today I mean."

"Why not?" I asked worriedly.

He shrugged his shoulders and just said, "She's always too immersed in her work. Plus this time she's designing her own wedding gown."

I chuckled at his honesty, "Don't worry too much. From what you said, she treats the wedding as an important matter as well."

"Guess so…" he muttered.

"Say –" I started as I took another piece of dessert from the plate, "—do you know someone by the name of Nogi Ruka?"

He gulped down another before looking at me curiously, "Yes I do. In fact he will be my best man."

My breath was stuck in my throat. "Y-you think I could meet him?"

He arched an eyebrow at me, "And why is that?"

I looked away from his scrutiny, "I-I just needed to ask him something."

"Sure."

I was startled, "-what?"

He looked at me annoyingly, "I said sure. I just texted him to come here right now. Plus I want him to taste this dessert too. This is _**good**_. You're lucky he's around today. He works as a pilot, so he's not always in town."

"Oh—" was the word that escaped my lips.

It was nerve-wrecking. It was just a question I tried to ask out of thought. But to think that that Ruka guy is coming over to my shop right now – was just _**frustrating**_.

My hand unknowingly reached for the last piece of the dessert – not realizing Hyuga's was there too – and our hands _touched_. I pulled back at once when I felt the warm contact, and stared at him – waiting for any reaction.

"Can I have the last piece? You have more right?" he innocently said and popped it into his mouth.

"Wait!—" I was about to say that the piece he just ate is the very last piece I made – but that curious and innocent look he just threw me with – I groaned inwardly.

_What's up with boys and their indifferent attitudes!_

_**Chime.**_

"Ah—that must be him. He must be just around the area to get here so quickly."

My heart thumped wildly against my chest. I swore I was going to faint if I hadn't support myself by holding on the counter. I saw my surroundings began to spin as I felt difficult to breath.

"Hey you alright?!" I heard Hyuga calling out to me and looking at me frantically.

I knew I was going to collapse. Then I heard another unfamiliar voice.

"What's wrong Natsume?"

_Black.

* * *

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	4. Whipped Cream & Whisky

**Best Served Cold**

_**Chapter Four:**_ _of __Whipped Cream __& __a little bit of Whisky_

**Disclaimer:** You know the drill.

**by Mich**

"Hey, are you alright?"

I stirred as I tried to pry open my eyes. I groaned at the throbbing pain on my head. I sat up clumsily and use my hand to rub the back of my head. "What happened?"

"You're lack of sleep."

My head snapped towards the unfamiliar voice. "What?" was the word which escaped my lips.

"Ruka said you're lack of sleep."

My head turned to the voice, which was much huskier and masculine than the former.

"Ruka?" I blurted.

"Yes," he replied annoyingly, "the Nogi Ruka you were talking about just now."

"You were talking about me?"Nogi asked curiously. I scrutinized his appearance. He had a casual checkered red-and-black tee on, matched with long denim jeans. His silky blonde hair flowed just above his shoulders, and his cerulean eyes sparked beautifully. His firm lips had a small smile on it, and his voice was gentle.

"I-uh." I sputtered for words because – apparently – he did not look alike _at all _with the man four years back, but ironically, I turned my head towards the other man slouching on the couch - he looked much more like _him. _"Have you been to Kyoto before?"

Nogi kept quiet, while Hyuga appeared to be deep in thought.

"I flew to Kyoto before, but I've never stayed there-" Nogi finally responded.

I quickly added, "- I mean, four years ago. You surely haven't become a pilot then. Were you there before?"

"Nope. I had never left Tokyo one bit before I took up piloting. May I ask why you asked?"

I shook my hands in front of me, "Ah nothing. It's just that. There's this guy." I paused, trying to notice both Nogi's and Hyuga's reaction. They were indifferent.

"This guy—" Nogi prompted me to continue.

"This guy I met – four years ago. It was raining heavily and I was running aimlessly in the dark alley. And then, I realized I was lost." I found myself reciting the whole story again – something I vowed to not tell anyone else.

"- then there was this guy. He suddenly ambushed me and pushed me to a wall in one of the dark alleys and – and – and started touching me."

It must be ironic, I mean, telling this embarrassing story to – not one – but _two _strangers.

I looked up at them, and I heard Nogi gaspednk while Hyuga had his eyebrows narrowed. And then I felt a few drops of hot liquid on my hands.

_I was crying._

And then, I realized. I was genuinely scared when it happened four years back. That was why I still remembered every single detail of it. I kept on telling myself that I enjoyed the touch rather than being afraid, but truthfully, I was scarred.

"Ah. Sorry." I clumsily wiped away the brimming tears. I opened my mouth to speak again, but Hyuga beat me to it.

"That's enough."

He interrupted me smoothly and ran a hand through his messy hair. He looked frustrated as his forehead was creased. He suddenly straightened and tried to reach my hand – and then the act was subtly interrupted by the ringing tone.

"Hello?"Nogi immediately answered his call. His eyebrows frowned a little and he mouthed to us– _be right back_ - and he rushed out from the shop before we could say anything.

_This is bad_, I thought when I saw Hyuga's vision turned from the entrance to me, and there's something in his eyes which told me he didn't exactly liked my story.

"Look –" he started before pausing, as if he was uncertain on how to converse, "- that guy you were talking about? I think it's probably me."

I drew in a sharp intake of breath – stunned by his sudden confession. "What did you say?"

His glare intensified and he looked like he was about to punch someone when he threw his head back.

Nogi came back into the scene and sat down on the couch. He straightened his shirt and leaned towards me, "So –"

Hyuga suddenly stood up and dragged my hand, "Sorry Ruka, I'll just have a word with her outside."

And then he pulled me out of the shop and walked two streets down. His grip was strong and tight, making me wince at the harsh pulling.

"Hey let me go! You're hurting me!" I whimpered as I tried to release my hand. He then pushed my wrist away harshly. I rubbed the reddened part and blew at it to ease the sore.

"What do you want from me? And you know that I'm getting married."

I was stunned by the question. "What are you talking about? What are you implying Hyuga?" I creased my forehead and stared at him.

He looked like he was about to punch someone in the face. He walked back and forth twice before yelling at me, "This is not happening!"

"Calm down Hyuga! Why are you making such a fuss?" I refrained from yelling at him because he was acting like a kid, screaming in the public.

He groaned softly and ran his hand over his hair again. Taking a few deep breaths, he turned and looked at me, "Tell me, Sakura Mikan, what do you want from me?"

I kept quiet and stared at him – _his eyes are so pretty_ – and finally opened my mouth and whispered, "I don't want anything from you."

He groaned in frustration again as he looked at me with those beautiful eyes of his. I felt my heart skipped a beat as his gaze was as if they were piercing my soul.

Then suddenly he grabbed my arm and pulled me and crashed his lips against mine. I was completely taken aback and…

"Look at me." He hissed.

I obliged and looked at him – he was staring straight at me, his brows creased and he was kissing me roughly, as if he was really frustrated with everything. He pulled away after a short while and was panting.

"Wha –" I whispered, and before I could say anything else, he started kissing me again.

This time, it felt different.

I could feel my cheeks burning up, and when I turned to look at him, his eyes were closed and his forehead wasn't creased anymore.

His grip on my arm loosened and his hand found his way to my cheek. He cupped my cheek and pushed his lips gently against mine and occasionally bit my lower lip, as if teasing me.

I realized I was already losing my control as I slowly closed my eyes and started to enjoy the kiss.

_It was like four years ago. This feeling. This touch._

We kissed for about two minutes before we both pulled away. We were panting, surprised at what we had just done.

"I –"

"How could you do this, Natsume? You're getting married for Pete's sake!"

It was Nogi. He looked half-frustrated and half-furious.

The look on Hyuga's face was as if he just realized he had done something terribly wrong. He turned to look at me, at Nogi, then at me again, and then at Nogi.

"Misaki cannot know this."

The words he spoke just killed me inside.

"I – I'll get going now." I quickly gathered up my thoughts and tried to flee this horrible scene.

Hyuga doubled back and quickly grabbed my arm. "No wait. I- I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way."

I yanked his hand away. "Don't touch me." I hissed. And then I brisk-walked, almost ran straight into my shop, not bothering his calls.

I slammed the door behind me and immediately flipped the "Open" door sign and locked it. There were violent knocks and someone calling my name from the other side of door but I could care less. It must be Hyuga, trying to explain for what he'd done.

_I could care less_, I told myself.

I bit my lower lip, trying as hard as I could to not cry. _Do not cry, Sakura Mikan._

I fished out my Blackberry from my pocket and my breath became irregular again as I tried to restrain my tears from flowing.

'_Anna, I'm closing the shop. I'll be here doing some pastries. I'll go home a bit late. No need to come back to the shop. I don't want to be disturbed. _

_M.'_

I pressed _'Send'_ and took a deep breath and looked at clock. It wrote 1915 hours. The sky was getting darker as the sun set. I dropped my phone onto the floor and went to lie on the couch instead.

Everything just happened in a_ 'whoosh'_ and I really couldn't keep track of them.

_Why must Harada contract us for the cateri__ng? Why must he be the fiancé? Why must he kiss me? Why must the kiss feel so damn bloody good? Why must all these happen?_

**RING.**

I opened my eyes. It was dark and I could barely see a thing.

_Shit. I must have fallen asleep._

My phone rang again and I reluctantly got up from the couch I was lying on and walked towards the only source of light in the dark.

I slumped down onto the floor and picked my Blackberry. I squinted when I looked at the bright screen.

It was a text message from an unknown number.

I punched some buttons and the content of the text came up on the screen.

'_Hey. I got your number from Misaki. I just want to say I'm really sorry about what happened earlier. It was a mistake. I shouldn't have kissed you, but I don't deny that it felt so damn good. I just want to make __it up for you, well y'know, in case you decide to poison our wedding cake heh. Meet me at my working place about, say, 2000 and we'll have dinner and then we'll talk this over? I sent you a map with my place in it. See you there then. _

_Hyuga Natsume.'_

I pushed the cancel button and took a good look at the clock. It wrote 2110 hours.

_Shit_, I cursed mentally. I was already late for an hour.

I breathed out loud and put my phone on the floor. _Should I go?_ It was just a kiss, no big deal. We're adults after all, we can afford a little bit of fun of course.

I decided to call him to confirm whether the dinner was canceled due to my lack of response. I punched a few numbers and placed my phone on my ear.

It rang for quite a few times and when I was just about to hang up, someone picked up.

"Hello?"

It was female.

"Hey. It's Sakura Mikan. Is this Harada?"

"Ah yes Mikan! I'm terribly sorry. We just finished our dinner but if you come over now you could catch some desserts of Natsume's."

There was a shout from the other side.

"Who called?"

I guessed Harada pulled away from the microphone and bellowed 'it's Mikan, dear' as it sounded pretty soft for a voice like hers.

"So you coming? I won't be around though. I've got to work on the finishing touches for my dress."

I thought for a while and when I didn't reply, Harada starting calling my name and that startled me.

"Oh yes – yes please. I'll come over in a few minutes."

"Right! And you two could discuss about the wedding's choice of pastries then. Natsume has been quite anxious about it since he reached home."

I fell silent as I thought of what else could Hyuga lie to his fiancée about, well, just anything!

I quickly replied with an 'okay' before Harada starts wondering about me being unfocused throughout the conversation and then the line went dead.

I quickly prepped myself and popped a few breath mints and I was on my way to his place, using his map as a guide, and apparently his place was just fifteen minutes away from my shop.

When I pushed the doorbell, the door opened and revealed a tall lady with pink hair.

"Oh hi there! Come on in. I'm just putting the dishes into the sink and then I need to go."

She sounded rushed as she ran across the room to clean up with table filled with empty plates.

"Hey. I'll clean the table. You should get going. Don't worry. I'll handle it." I said as I closed the door behind me.

Harada stopped abruptly and stared at me for a second. "You sure?"

I nodded reassuredly and her eyes suddenly sparkled with delight as she left the dishes and grabbed her handbag and shortly after she was already at the door.

"Thank you so much Mikan. How can I repay you." She kissed on my cheeks and gave me a squeeze. "You have fun with Natsume okay? And oh, tell him I won't be back till tomorrow."

I nodded again and in another second, she was gone.

I took off my coat and my handbag and placed them on the couch. I heard the water flowing in another room, but I could care less. This place is amazing.

It was a very spacious apartment. Beside the entrance was the lounge, decorated in an antique-ish way with vintage items in appropriate places and they had a fireplace, though apparently they rarely used it because there weren't many firewood in it. But the best part isn't that, it's the kitchen.

The polished white area on the left of the apartment – Hyuga's workplace, I presume – was very very wide and had all these definitely expensive utensils – many which I recognized immediately. I was restraining myself from gaping at the oh-so-glamorous workplace which I wished I have one for myself.

My terrain of thoughts was interrupted when the sound of water flowing in the kitchen stopped.

I approached the table and proceeded to gather and carry the dishes into the kitchen.

When I first entered the kitchen, I saw Hyuga whipping some white cream. As his back was facing me, I tip-toed across the room, hoping I could take a look at what he was whipping up because the way I see he make pastries, he must be a top chef.

"I can hear you."

His voice rang clearly across the empty room. I slumped my shoulders after knowing he caught me sneaking. Nevertheless, I need to at least look at the thing he's making – maybe I could learn a thing or two. I put the dishes aside and continued tip-toeing until I was really close to him. I peered across his shoulders and saw he was making some—

"Caught you!"

I yelped in surprise when I suddenly felt a cold substance on my nose.

He looked mildly surprised as well when he saw me – perhaps he was expecting Harada – but he quickly said sorry and offered to wipe the cream away.

I stared at him and not before long I burst into a fit of laughter.

"Your – face!" I tried to resist laughing, but the confused look on his face was making me laugh harder.

"What?" he replied anxiously and when he became unfocused, I quickly took a dip of cream from the bowl and swiped it all over his face.

The surprised look on his face immediately changed into an annoyed one, and he took a handful of the white cream and splat the whole thing onto my face. The cream slowly fell from my face and revealed my disgruntled face.

"What? You asked for it!" he retorted.

And that the cream war began, and we were laughing at each other every time the cream fell on someone.

"What on earth!"

It was Harada.

We turned to look at the slightly angered voice and saw Harada looking rather annoyed.

"I came back to get something I forgot and boy I'm surprised at what you both were up to. You two. Go wash yourselves up. I'm going out now so go clean yourselves up. And Mikan, you can use my clothes. My room is just beside Natsume. I have to go now. Bye!"

I chuckled a little and shouted a _'thanks'_ at the retreating figure and then, the lady is gone again. When we heard the door was closed, we started laughing again.

"Well I guess I'll clean myself now." I pulled myself up and looked at the guy sitting on the floor, covered in white cream.

"You should go clean up too." I offered my hand to Hyuga and pulled him up. We stared at each other and started laughing again because we were truly a mess.

I licked some cream off my lips and boy, it was extremely delicious!

"Hyuga. You have to teach me how to do this. It's so soft and the texture is so- so amazing! You must teach me this!" I squealed as I tried more of the cream. "Astounding!"

"Natsume."

"Hm?" I turned to look at him as I licked a little more cream off my fingers, and he was staring at me again with those beautiful eyes of his.

"On one condition. Call me Natsume."

His gentle maroon eyes were piercing into my hazel ones, and the spark in his were as if searching for something. I quickly snapped out of it and laughed it off. "Don't be silly. Come on, let's wash up."

And then, it happened.

He grabbed my waist and pulled myself against him. He looked at me for another second and slowly placed his lips against mine.

What initially was a peck became rough and passionate kisses as he pushed me against the wall. He carried me up so that I was a few inches higher than him and we started kissing again. My legs were clamped around his waist and we didn't stop. We only pulled away to catch some air and then we continued again.

He breathed in loudly when I bit his lower lip softly and we were constantly crashing our lips against each other's. And then he stopped kissing me and moved on to my cheek and my jaw and to my neck. I closed my eyes and I was moaning softly when he nipped my neck. The more he pushed me against the wall, with his body slamming against mine, the more I felt turned on.

And when I finally realized-

_**We had sex.**_

* * *

I'm extremely sorry for the lack of updates. My exams just ended and my holidays started about two days ago. Been trying to squeeze out some writing juice since I'd not been writing for quite some time. I apologize if this chapters weren't as good as the last few. Oh well, otherwise, thanks for reading and hope you enjoyed the new chapter! :)

Reviews, please?


	5. Bittersweet Chocolates & Red Wine

_"Natsume."_

_"Hm?" I turned to look at him as I licked a little more cream off my fingers, and he was staring at me again with those beautiful eyes of his._

_"On one condition. Call me Natsume."_

_His gentle maroon eyes were piercing into my hazel ones, and the spark in his were as if searching for something. I quickly snapped out of it and laughed it off. "Don't be silly. Come on, let's wash up."_

_And then, it happened._

**Best Served Cold**

**Chapter Five –** _of Bittersweet Chocolates & a glass of Red Wine_

**16.01.12**

**by: Mich**

"What are we going to do?"

That was the ultimate question.

Here I am, lying on the bed with a man I just met today, who coincidentally tried to be funny with me a couple of years ago, and we just had some passionate love-making. What's worse, this guy is engaged and will be tying the knot in a few months.

"What are we going to do?" I repeated the question.

He looked at me with those beautiful eyes of his – which gradually softens – and mutters, "I don't know."

I sat up, covering my body with the blanket on the bed, "This is insane."

He sat up too – and gave a huge sigh, "I'm sorry."

I kept quiet. I didn't know what to say. I looked around the room.

The bedroom was even more astounding than his workplace – the side overlooking the city was made of glass – and you can practically see the whole city – and the scenery at night is beyond magnificent. The bed is a king-sized, and the wood was made out of oak. The walls were painted white – but they were still as clean as new. The room looked like an expensive hotel suite.

The clock on the wall showed half past one.

It was very late at night, but I knew I needed to go, even though Harada said that she was not going to come home that day.

"I need to go", my voice rang in the quiet room.

"Wait."

His sudden reply prompted me to stop. I looked back – and that guy looked pathetic. He looked as if he didn't know what to do – like a kid who had just broke his mother's vase.

"What?" I replied but continued picking up my clothes and struggling to put them on.

"I'm sorry." He said again.

"I heard you the first time." I hissed as I tried to find my purse.

"No. I mean. I'm really sorry. It's your first time, isn't it?" he whispered.

I stopped and stared at him. I didn't know if he was too scared to look at me in the eyes, or he is just playing dumb. "I don't need your sympathy." I glanced around the room and finally saw my purse. I picked it up and proceeded to leave.

"No wait!" He quickly got to his pants and followed me out of the room.

I doubled back and glared at him, "You do not want Harada to know this right? You are not going to let this ruin your wedding right? If that is the case, then stop making this harder for the both of us. It's a one-night-stand, and so be it. It's done. All shall be forgotten after tonight. Do you understand me?"

He looked at me with sad eyes, and nodded reluctantly after a few seconds.

"Good." I said and left the house.

**RING**

I was walking towards the shop when my Blackberry rang. I fished it out from my purse and Anna's phone ID appeared on the screen. I pressed the green button.

"Sakura speaking."

"_Where on Earth were you? I called you so many times but you didn't pick up!"_

"Oh sorry, I was busy baking and my phone was on silent. I'm heading home now. What's up?"

"_You're lying. I went to the shop and it was all dark and the doors were locked. There was no one there. Where were you?" _her voice was demanding.

I hesitated for a while before continuing, "I was at Harada's. Hyuga asked me to go over to discuss some pastries for the wedding."

_There were a few quiet moments before an 'oh' ensued. "But I thought you practice no-after-hours-work policy.."_ she muttered softly

"Anna. I'm going home now. So don't worry okay? I'm just a few blocks away. I'll talk to you later."

And I hung up. I let out an exasperated sigh as I walked across the streets.

_This is madness_, I thought.

I was fiddling with my phone when suddenly I was whirled around and then… **poof!**

**RING**

"_Natsume! Have you heard?" _

I gave a puzzled 'what?' while drying my hair with a towel.

"_About Sakura in the hospital?"_

"Sakura what?"

I dropped the towel on the floor and immediately reached for the keys on the table. "What happened to her?"

"Anna told me that an old lady found Sakura lying on the ground unconscious and she was beaten up quite badly. She was the one who sent her to the hospital. Anna called me to tell me that Sakura might not be able to recover fully to make the pastries in time for our wedding. What do we do now?"

"Where are you? I'm heading to the hospital now. Do you want me to pick you up?" I said quite impatiently as I kept looking at the traffic light, wanting it to turn green as soon as possible.

"I'm at Flora's. I can't go over, but I guess you could just discuss with her about the catering. I'll be there after I finish my business here."

"Okay." I replied hastily and punched the red button. I turned right and parked my car just outside of the hospital and rushed to the reception to ask the ward Sakura was in. _I was nervous._

I brisk-walked to the ward the receptionist mentioned to me, and after a couple of rows, I finally reached the room.

**L3-02**

I slowly pushed the doorknob and there was a click. I opened the door quickly and saw Umenomiya sitting next to the bed, and lying on the bed itself was an unconscious and badly bruised Sakura.

I closed the door behind me and walked quietly towards her.

"What happened to her?" I whispered.

Umenomiya turned to look – her face had traces of tears on it – and her lips were trembling. Her hands were clasping with Sakura's.

"I don't know –" she hiccupped. "The doctor said that she might have been robbed and –" she paused.

"And?" I prompted quickly.

"And that – she might have been - sexually assaulted." she finished the sentence and started sobbing again.

I glanced at the girl who was lying on the bed. She would have looked very beautiful and peaceful if she didn't have the bruises and bandages on her face and arms.

Before I was able to say anything, the door clicked again, and a few people emerged – one of them was Ruka.

"Hey.." Ruka muttered to me. The others nodded at me and went to Umenomiya's side. They later introduced themselves as Andou Tsubasa and Ogasawara Nonoko. Ruka prompted to go out from the room for a talk. I obliged and left the room.

**CLICK**

We walked across the dark corridors and went to the vending machines. Ruka slipped in a few coins and two cans of coffee popped out. He shoved one of them to me and sat down on the green seat next to me.

"Why are you here?" I asked as I pulled the tab on the can.

"Misaki told me. She was really worried actually. She said she'll be coming over when she's done at Flora's." Ruka did the same and started sipping from the can.

"Yeah she told me that too." And I started gulping the drink.

Ruka gave me a glance and asked if there was something wrong.

I shook my head and awkward silence ensued.

"I'm curious." he started.

I turned to look at him, and his cerulean eyes were staring at me intensely.

"Were you the guy Sakura talked about earlier today? The guy who sexually harassed her in Kyoto a couple years back?"

His voice was demanding, but calm. I suppose he wanted answers from the public kiss I had with Sakura.

I avoided his interrogating eyes and shook my half-empty coffee can. I kept quiet.

He scoffed. "You were, weren't you?" It was rhetoric.

"I understand that old Hyuga Natsume was a bastard, but what are you doing now? Especially when you're about to marry the girl of your dreams?" he continued.

Ruka was right. Misaki was the lady of my dreams. She changed me from the asshole I was when I was still a teenager. And she was, and is, the reason that I am still here today.

_Should I tell him that I slept with Sakura before this incident happened to her? Should I tell him that I was the indirect cause of her mishap? Should I? or should I not?_

Ruka sighed in exasperation. "That aside. How is she? What happened to her?"

"Umenomiya –" I paused when I saw Ruka's confused look, "- the girl with the pink hair and Sakura's roommate – said she was robbed… and probably… sexually assaulted too." I crushed the empty can in my palm and threw it in the nearby dustbin. It went in straight.

I think Ruka sensed something was off, because the next question he asked completely caught me off-guard.

"Did you sleep with her?"

I panicked, but I tried to keep a straight face.

"You're unbelievable."

Ruka stood up abruptly, threw his empty can into the dustbin and stormed off.

_God this is becoming more and more complicated!_

I went back to the room after about fifteen minutes of self-blame and cursing and found that Sakura was awake. She looked pale and tired, but she still managed to smile – even though it looked like a painful smile.

Ruka sat on the couch and looked rather agitated, while Andou and Ogasawara sat on the opposite side of the bed from Umenomiya.

_Hi_, she whispered weakly.

I put on a forceful smile and nodded at her.

The doctor came in shortly and wanted some privacy. Everyone insisted that they would stay, so the doctor had no choice but to proceed with what he intended to do.

"Miss Sakura Mikan. I have your test results. Umm –" the doctor hesitated and glanced around the room.

"Go on." Sakura replied and she tried to sit up straight – with the help of Umenomiya of course.

"Umm –" the doctor hesitated again before continuing, "we found semen and blood in your vagina, and there have been traces of penetration and bruises on your vaginal wall. I'm sorry to say that you most probably have been sexually assaulted. Other than that, you are fine and your external injuries will heal in no time."

Silence enveloped the room. The doctor closed the file hastily. "We will take the sample of the semen and trace it on our database to see if there are any hits in the nation's crime records."

The girls nodded, except Sakura. "No." her voice rang in authority. "I don't want you to do so."

"But Miss." the doctor retorted, and Umenomiya chipped in as well, "Yeah Mikan! We have to lock this jerk up!"

I shook a little bit, but Sakura insisted that she didn't want anything else to do with the one who beaten her up like that. Money gone – fine. Virginity gone – fine. Her justification was that she didn't want to go to court and convict someone who had raped her before. She said she wouldn't be able to handle the pressure and the shame.

Umenomiya and Ogasawara kept pushing her, but her decision was final. She revoked the rights of the hospital to examine the DNA of the prep.

I felt Ruka's eyes watching me throughout the commotion, and I couldn't bear to look at him. We were quiet the whole time.

"If you are really sure with your decision." the doctor said and the room became silent again, and Sakura nodded in response. He took a deep breath and proceeded to leave the room.

Right after he left the ward, the room started to become noisy again. Sakura finally snapped.

"Look. I'm fine okay. And I don't want to have anything to do with that guy again, alright? Anyway, I'm going to get some rest now. It's already 5 in the morning, you all should go home and rest too." she muttered and pulled her blanket over her – a sign that she doesn't want to be disturbed any longer. It was a hard day for her after all.

Everyone started leaving after that, and naturally, I was the last. I wanted to talk to her, but I didn't know how to start the conversation.

_And she still had that blanket over her…_

"Sakura…" I whispered.

She slowly pushed the blanket covering her – her face facing the side and her eyes looking at the opposite wall.

"What?" she said softly.

There's this thing about Sakura. I don't know why but I just get tongue-tied whenever I try to start a conversation with her. Either she snaps or we were in a very awkward situation, like this one.

"Umm." I drawled.

"Don't feel bad. I don't think that guy actually did something to do – I think. He drugged me with chloroform and took my purse and hit me, but I don't think he actually raped me. I don't remember." she mumbled, her eyes still refusing to look at me.

"I'm sorry."

That was the only thing I could say. I didn't know what else to say.

"Stop apologizing. I hate guys who keep on apologizing. I told you it wasn't your fault. And I'm just taking precautions."

The door clicked open again and a lady with shoulder-length pink hair walked in.

It was Misaki.

She beamed at Sakura and went over to hug her. She obviously didn't know what happened to her.

"Are you alright?" Misaki was nothing but concerned.

"I'm fine. Thank you Harada." Sakura smiled politely.

"Okay! Just don't strain yourself too much okay? And about the catering, if you can't make it on time, I'll just ask Natsume to find someone else. So don't you worry!" Misaki tried to reassure Sakura.

"Oh no no!" Sakura waved her hands in front of her. "I promised to be your caterer, so your caterer I will be. Don't worry. I'll be fine way before your wedding takes place. Promise."

I looked at Sakura, who was busy entertaining her customer – my fiancée, and I felt even worse.

"Oh by the way, Natsume." Misaki suddenly turned to look at me. "Ruka is waiting outside. Said he wants to talk to you. I think you should probably go meet him. I'll catch up afterwards."

I nodded and took a final glance at Sakura – whom avoided my eye contact – and left the room to meet with Ruka at the hallways. He was drinking another can of coffee.

"You know it isn't good to drink so much coffee, especially when you're a pilot." I rambled and plopped myself on the seat next to him.

"Tough day, isn't it?" he said, and I nodded, and he continued, "So?"

"So what?" I pretended to not understand his question.

"Don't act dumb. What is the real story?" he prompted.

I turned to stare at him, "You're becoming more and more like Imai. And it's annoying."

"What do you expect? Girlfriend influence." He retorted.

I scoffed, but the dim atmosphere came back rather quickly.

I took a deep breath. "She thinks that she wasn't raped by the man who robbed her. She just didn't want any trouble so she's just taking precautions."

Ruka chortled bitterly. "What a girl. This must make you feel even guiltier heh."

I shrugged.

"But you should fix this. The sooner the better. Before anyone else finds out. Before Misaki finds out, especially."

"You think I shouldn't tell Misaki about what happened?"

_Either ways, I'm already cheating on her, aren't I?_

"What? Are you insane? What do you think will happen to the three of you if you tell Misaki what actually happened?"

"**Tell me what?"**

I guess Ruka's voice went a little bit too high-pitched when Misaki suddenly came out from the dark corridors and it seemed like she overheard a little bit of our conversation.

"Tell me what?" she repeated.

I kept my mouth shut and waited for Ruka's cue – it was after all his fault for bringing up the matter. It was obvious that he was panicking when he mumbled incoherent words.

"I – uh – tell you that – uh – Looking at you guys, I feel like I might be proposing to Imai too! Yeah!"

I shook my head at Ruka's mundane explanation, and hoped that Misaki would not ponder further.

"Ohhh… Maybe we can organize a double wedding!" Misaki suggested.

Both Ruka and I stood up abruptly from our seats at the suggestion and immediately went against the idea. Misaki pouted at the reactions she got and proceeded to sit beside me.

She sighed. "Poor Mikan… for this thing to have happened to her…"

Ruka shot me a look, and I nudged him with my elbow, causing him to wince at the impact.

"Fancy see-ing you here."

A calm voice rang across the quiet hallways. All of us turned to look.

"Imai!" Ruka and Misaki chorused.

"What are you all doing here? At this hour?" Imai shot Ruka a suspicious look and gave us a few glances.

"Oh we're just visiting a friend." Ruka answered.

Imai is an apprentice doctor, and was about to complete her housemanship, after which she will be a full-fledged doctor in the hospital. She is Ruka's girlfriend, has a pesky character, and personally I think she would have been better off being a detective. Too annoying and always poking into other people's business, if you get what I mean.

"What friend?" she prompted.

Here we go again.

"She's the caterer for the wedding. Her name is Sakura Mikan." Misaki chipped in.

Imai raised her right brow. "Sakura Mikan?" she asked.

Ruka nodded and she appeared to be deep in thought. "Why? Do you know her?"

"Ummm." Imai paused, "I kind-of know her – anyway, I need to get to work. I'll talk to you guys later okay?"

And she left abruptly.

"Strange… she's acting weird…" Ruka muttered softly as he looked on until her back blends into the soon-to-be-crowded hallways.

"Come on." I stood up. "It's already almost dawn. The hospital will be filled in a while more. Let's head back and rest."

I stretched while my companions agreed and we left the hospital.

Rough day it was.

Misaki and I rode our Honda back home, while Ruka drove his Subaru to the airport.

The way home was quiet and rather awkward.

I was never much of a talker, but a silent Misaki is a rare sight.

"**Are you hiding something from me?"**

* * *

Wow it's been more than a year since I was here. I'm really sorry for the lack of updates. But good news is, I'm finally done with college!

So I guess I'll have more time to update and wrap up my unfinished stories.

Stay tuned!

**Like this chapter?**

**Review pretty please! :) **


	6. Strawberry Floral Cookies & Vodka

_Misaki and I rode our Honda back home, while Ruka drove his Subaru to the airport._

_The way home was quiet and rather awkward._

_I was never much of a talker, but a silent Misaki is a rare sight._

_"__**Are you hiding something from me?"**_

**Best Served Cold**

**Chapter Six –** _of __Strawberry Floral Cookies __& __Vodka_

**19.05.12**

**by: Mich**

"What?"

I almost choked on my drive.

"I was kidding. But you aren't really hiding something from me, are you?"

I turned to look at my fiancée, and she was grinning at me.

I stifled a little and dismissed her suspicion.

There wasn't another word in the car after that.

**"Mikan."**

I squinted my eyes as I heard someone called my name. I slowly pried my eyes and boy, what a massive headache I have. I took a while to focus and…

"Hotaru?"

She gave a small smile. "How are you?"

I sat up. "Hotaru?" I almost screamed.

"Hush." She silenced me by putting her forefinger in front of her lips. "It's still early."

I looked at the clock on the wall. It was 5AM.

"What are you doing here?"

I supposed I asked the obvious when she looked at me dryly and glanced at the stethoscope dangling over her neck.

"Ahhhh…"

"It's been a while."

I nodded a little bit vigorously and I felt a sharp pain on my temple and squirmed.

"Your record says that you were hit on the head. Your results for MRI and CT scan will be out soon. How are you feeling? Is the pain unbearable? Maybe I should inspect." Hotaru quickly fished out a small flashlight from her pockets.

"No no. I'm alright. Just… a little bit… I'll be okay."

'Oh', she said, and put back her flashlight into her white coat.

"Thanks." I said while massaging my temples.

"You should rest. I'm sorry to wake you up. I just wanted to check on you." Hotaru's gaze softened a little.

"It's okay, really. I'm glad that you're talking to me. I was worried you are still angry –"

"Mikan." Hotaru suddenly snapped.

I was startled.

"Let's not talk about that anymore, okay?"

I nodded slightly and she smiled softly. "I shall get back to work then. Rest well."

I nodded again and she stepped out from the room.

**BRRRR.**

My Blackberry on the desk next to me started vibrating. I swiped it off the table and answered the call.

"Hello."

A husky voice answered. _"Hey… Feeling better?"_

I tried to figure out who it was on the line, but it was just too unfamiliar. "Who is this?"

The voice paused for a while, _"It's Hyuga Natsume."_

My forehead creased when I heard the name. "Yes? Can I help you with anything at all?"

There was a sigh on the other side before he spoke again, _"Are you feeling okay?"_

"It's 5AM," I snapped, "I am supposed to be asleep. And so are you."

"_But you're not."_

I wasn't expecting that. I cleared my throat and took a deep breath. "Well thanks to your call."

"_Really? Sorry then."_

I kept quiet.

"_I just wanted to check on you. To see if you're alright. I'm sorry I woke you up."_

"Hyuga."

"_Yes."_

"Thank you for your concern, but like I'd said, it was a hookup, so don't bother yourself with it. You're making things difficult and uncomfortable between us. You're still my client and I still need to face you and Harada even after this. And don't forget you are to be a married man. So please do me a favour and let's pretend it never happened. It's easier for you and I."

He was silent for a while, _"Sakura, I don't mean to –"_

"I'm hanging up."

I ended the call and threw my Blackberry on the desk. I lied on the bed and rested my arm against my forehead.

"_Patience, Mikan. Patience."_ I chanted in my head.

**11AM**

"Your results from MRI and CT scan are back. You're perfectly fine."

The doctor flipped through my file and smiled brightly at me. "If nothing goes wrong for the next 24 hours, you can be discharged by tomorrow afternoon."

"Thank you doctor." I smiled back.

"So are you feeling anything unusual today?" the doctor fiddled her spectacles and was focused on scribbling something on the paper.

I thought about the headache from earlier today, but I dismissed it as just not having enough sleep.

"Nope." I beamed at her.

"Good. I'll see you later then." She dropped my file into the box in front of my bed and left the room.

"Good day doctor!" a squeaky voice came from the other side of the door. It was Anna.

Quickly enough, a tall girl with bushy strawberry hair emerged, with a bouquet of pink roses in her hands.

"Mikan!" she ran towards my bed. "I brought you flowers! Do you like it?"

I nodded and smiled at her. "Love it. Thanks a lot Anna."

She grinned cheekily and looked as if she was extremely proud of herself. "I'll put them in the vase."

"So how's the shop today? Any annoying customer you can't handle?"

Anna chuckled and arranged the pretty flowers in the vase. "You silly girl. Our big project now is Misaki-san's and Hyuga-san's wedding. I don't think I can afford to accept any other projects till theirs is done!"

I felt like strangling my childhood friend. "What? How much money and businesses are we going to lose turning them away just because we have a celebrity wedding to prep? And when is their freakin' wedding anyway?"

"Two months."

"What?"

"Misaki-san's and Hyuga-san's wedding are going to be held in two months. Didn't you know?" Anna looked at me innocently as she threw away the plastic wrappings of the bouquet.

"No I didn't know. I was busy designing the dessert…" I drawled off.

_Okay, focus and keep calm Mikan. There's nothing to be worried about. Last night was just a one-shot. Nothing more, nothing less. Think of this in a positive way. You'll only need to see him for only another two months. Then no more contact after that. So focus!_

"Mikan? Earth to Mikan!" Anna waved her hands in front of my face.

"I heard you Anna. I was just thinking. Why did you accept their project at such notice! There's so much to do still!" I snapped at the playful girl.

She pouted and mumbled something which sounded like 'celebrity' or 'reputation' or something along those lines.

"Anyway!" she beamed at me – an attempt to escape my warnings, "What did the doctor say? Are you feeling okay? Are you sure you don't want to go to the police?"

I sighed in exasperation. "I'm alright. And I'm going to say this for _the_ last time, I'm not going to the police. I don't want to think about anything from last night. So let's not talk about it anymore?"

Anna nodded hesitantly. Her eyes looked a bit sad and disappointed, but she quickly shrugged it off. "So when are you getting discharged? We have a lot of work you know!"

"And whose fault is that?" I shot back naughtily. Anna almost tackled me if someone had not knocked on the door.

"Come in!" I said while I straightened my clothes and gestured to the girl sitting next to me to behave.

The door opened slightly and a head with blonde hair peeked in.

It was Nogi.

"Hello."

I nodded shyly at him as he closed the door behind him. "Hello."

"How are you feeling?" Nogi slowly walked towards my bed. "I'm sorry I didn't manage to get anything for you, since I just landed at Narita and I came here straight."

"Oh it's okay really. No need to bring anything. Thank you for dropping by." I bowed slightly at him.

He returned the gesture and asked me if I was feeling alright. I didn't know why, but somehow our conversation ended up talking about Hyuga.

"Did he come over to visit?"

Nogi looked at me in a strange, strange way.

"Nope. I asked him not to. I mean, they are just our clients. It's not appropriate to involve them in my personal life."

Nogi turned around to sit on the sofa. "Oh I'm sure they would like to be friends. And I'm pretty sure they are concerned about your health too. Considering on what… happened yesterday. Even though you're just the _pâtissier for their wedding."_

_Somehow I felt like Nogi is trying to hint something to me. The way he spoke… the words he used… they were very very strange. Like he was testing me. Or giving me a warning. Something like that._

_ The door suddenly slid open._

"Hello Mikan!"

Another voice filled the room. Of course, it was Harada and Hyuga.

"Are you feeling okay? You were tired last night so we didn't really talk much. We brought fruits by the way!" Harada was beaming and she quickly unwrapped the fruit basket on the desk. "Fruits, anyone?"

I smiled a little at Harada who started picking some fruits from the basket next to me, and narrowed my eyes at Hyuga, who was standing quietly behind her with his hands in his pockets. _Cocky fella._

"Thank you for dropping by Harada-san." I paused, "Hyuga-san. You didn't have to."

Harada quickly responded, "No no. It's our fault to begin with. We invited you to our house to have dinner and you were assaulted near our home. I feel so guilty. I hope I can make it up to you."

I smiled at her lightly and assured that she has nothing to be sorry about. She then left the room to prepare the fruits and Anna followed her.

After the door closed after Harada and Anna, Nogi suddenly stood up. He placed his hands into his pockets and had a hardened look on his face.

"So?" his voice rang with authority. He was a complete different person from before.

"What?" Hyuga responded with the same cold voice.

I looked at them questioningly.

Hyuga glanced at me and turned back to look at Nogi. "He knows. He found out by himself."

My heart dropped.

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

Nogi suddenly grabbed Hyuga's collar and breathed down his neck. "Have you decided to tell Misaki? Or are you not planning to tell her anything until you two get married?"

"Stop it, Nogi-san." I said quietly. He looked at me and reluctantly released Hyuga.

"Sakura-san, I don't mean to be rude. But I think what you two did is highly…" he sighed, "…inappropriatel."

I lowered my head to avoid Nogi's piercing gaze. I knew what he said was right. I felt dirty and disgusted at myself. And most of all I was disappointed at myself. For letting myself succumb to such temptation. Grown-ups we are, but it was wrong of me to get involved with a married man, or in this case, a groom-to-be.

"Hey stop that. Don't be so mean." Hyuga retorted and pushed Nogi lightly on the shoulder.

"Don't touch me." Nogi hissed as he dusted his shoulder, as if he was disgusted at his friend's gesture.

Hyuga balled his fist. "What's your problem now Nogi? You picking a fight?"

Nogi was almost going to punch Hyuga on the face hadn't the door suddenly slide open.

"What's happening in here?" Harada felt the tension between the males as she brought a plate of fruits into the room. Anna who was following her had a questioning look on her face too.

"Nothing." Nogi quickly composed himself and went back to sit on sofa.

"Okay…" Harada was glancing at the three of us back and forth. "Here, have some fruits Mikan."

"Thank you." I greeted politely and awkwardly took a piece of apple and popped it into my mouth. "Tasty!"

Harada beamed at me. "You're welcome! I'm glad you liked it."

"My what a crowd." A deep female voice suddenly filled the room. It was Hotaru.

"Hello Hotaru!" Misaki smiled brightly and hugged the doctor. "It's been a while!"

Hotaru looked at the girl annoyingly. "Stop it. You'll ruin my well-ironed coat."

Harada quickly released her and pouted at the remark. She quickly recovered and squealed.

"By the way, I was talking to Anna-san just now when we were cutting the fruits and we were discussing about the wedding plans and she gave me a marvelous idea!"

I wasn't really paying attention to her announcement because I was busy pondering at how to fix the issue when someone else now know about last night. I thought things couldn't have been worse.

"I've decided to push forward the wedding! It will be held a month from now!"

**I should have known better.**

* * *

****I've been quite inactive lately and I'm back to tie some loose ends - finishing the stories I started.

Though writing is still a passion, I have more important things to attend to in life.

I'm not sure if I'm going to start new stories and whatnot, but for now, I'm just going to revise and finish off the stories I started.

Also, sorry for the lack of updates. Thank you for forgiving me over and over again :).

That aside, **like this chapter?**

**Review pretty please? :D**


	7. Carbonara Spaghetti & White Wine

_I wasn't really paying attention to her announcement because I was busy pondering on how to fix the issue when someone else now know about last night. I thought things couldn't have been worse. _

"_I've decided to push forward the wedding! It will be held a month from now!"_

_**I should have known better.**_

**Best Served Cold**

**Chapter Seven –** _of __Carbonara Spaghetti __& __White Wine_

**22.05.12**

**by: Mich**

"Misaki. A word please?"

I pulled Misaki out from the room and the crowd.

"What were you thinking?" I stared at her.

She pulled her tongue at me. "Well I thought since we're going to get married anyway, why not we make it earlier?"

I sighed exasperatedly. "Well you should have at least discussed it with me before making such a big decision. I'm going to be the groom of the wedding."

"You don't really care about the wedding before this," she started off, "I did all the preparations – the clothes, the chapel, the date, the time, and you were only responsible in choosing the caterer. And you flunked even on that matter, until I finally intervened at Mikan's shop."

"I do!" I retorted. "I do care. I just don't understand why you ladies get worked up over everything. I wanted a simple ceremony with a few close friends, but you insisted on having a huge party and I heard you even invited those paparazzis to photograph our wedding. I didn't want to say much about the others, but this… this is a little over the top."

"Look Natsume. The decision has been made. I've already called the chapel and there is a slot in a month if we want it. So I said yes. I will finish off the wedding dress as quickly as possible, but I might need to stay over at the studio for a couple of days. As for the caterer… Anna has already said yes."

"How about Sakura? She had just got into an incident yesterday night. Will she be able to prep for our wedding in just a month?"

"That. That I will need your help. You'll collaborate with Mikan and work out the pastries you want. That's your only job throughout the wedding, so make sure you don't flunk it."

"But I-"

"No buts. I'm going in."

Misaki stopped me from saying further and went back into the room.

_This is a nightmare_, I thought.

**SLIDE**

"Mikan!"

The door slid open and Harada appeared again.

She approached my bed and sat next to me. "I'm sure Anna has already told you about our change of plans?" she gestured at Anna, who returned it with a big grin on her face.

I nodded unconsciously when I was actually still baffled at how fast everything is going.

The door slid open again and Hyuga came in.

I was distracted for a while when he stepped in, but Harada snapped me out of my thoughts when she suddenly whispered in my ears.

"I hope you'll work well with Natsume? He's known to be a bossy and rather particular person, but I hope you'll bear with it till the wedding ends? Please please please?"

I nodded again and looked at the man who sat beside Nogi and Hotaru on the sofa. He looked frustrated.

"Sure…" I drawled off.

**DING.**

"ARGH!"

I screamed as I heard a loud ringing sound in my ears and my head started to feel like it was going to explode. Everything in view started spinning and the ringing sound kept coming back. I heard faint voices and some scattered colours were hovering above me. I clasped my chest as I started to feel out of breath. It was excruciating and I think I fainted after that, because everything just went black and I don't remember what happened.

"_Doctor. What happened to my friend?"_

I stirred and tried to open my eyes. The ringing stopped but my head still felt heavy. My throat and lips felt dry. I squinted as the light above me shone directly on my eyes.

"We did an emergency CT and MRI scan. It turns out your friend has a tumour in her brain. We believe that the reason why we didn't see it in the previous scans is because the cells were still benign. It is possible that during the incident yesterday where she was hit on the head, the unusual force on her skull, or head trauma as we usually call it, had triggered her initially benign brain tissues to grow aggressively within the span of 24 hours. What she experienced earlier is called the cerebral hemorrhage, which means there's a bleeding in the brain. But luckily enough we managed to inject Mannitol into her body to reduce the intracranial pressure, so she's fine for now."

I heard gasps around the room as I tried to sit up. "Mikan!"

Anna quickly came over to my side. I saw traces of tears on her face and her eyes were swollen. "You scared the life out of me!"

I tried to talk to her, but nothing came out from my throat.

I saw the others were huddled quietly together – Hyuga was hugging a crying Harada and Nogi was standing next to Hotaru.

I gulped and asked for water. Anna poured me a glass of water and passed it to me. I took a few sips and swallowed. "Is it cancerous?"

"We can never know whether it's benign or malignant unless we do a biopsy. But from the looks of it, and the rate of the cells growing abnormally – I suggest you to be mentally prepared."

Harada started sobbing again and I heard Hyuga trying to calm her. Nogi had his forehead creased while Hotaru looked pissed. Anna… well, she's trying hard to look strong.

"We have scheduled for your biopsy later today in the evening. We will insert a needle into your brain where the tumour is according to the CT scan films. We will drill a hole through your skull to obtain samples to determine whether the tumour is benign or malignant. Though the biopsy is risky, it's the only thing we can do for now before we determine which measure to be taken."

It took quite a while for everything to sink in. No wonder I fainted suddenly at the shop earlier yesterday. I thought I was just feeling a bit too tired and sleep-deprived. Life is such a joke, _really._

"I understand doctor. I trust you." I said softly.

The doctor nodded and left the room. The atmosphere was tense and everyone was silent.

"Hey I'm fine alright! Be positive!" I beamed to change the mood in the room. Suddenly Hotaru rushed out from the room and slammed the door behind her.

"Okay… That wasn't really positive…" I muttered.

"**Senior!"**

My senior in neurosurgery turned around to look at me. She didn't look quite happy. "Yes, Imai-san?"

"Could you explain to me in detail about my friend's condition?"

She creased her forehead and replied hesitantly, "You know I shouldn't –"

"Please!" I begged, "She's an important friend."

My senior gave a deep sigh. "Things aren't looking good for her. The tumor is growing on her temporal lobe. The incident just now is probably caused by the intracranial hypertension in the skull due to its rather large size of tumor. Like I'd said, considering the rate of the cells growing abnormally in just 24 hours, the tumor is most probably malignant. But we cannot say for sure until we do the biopsy, so there's still hope. Albeit small."

I felt like my breath was stuck in my throat. "What are her chances then?"

She lowered her head. "If it's malignant, considering its size, without surgery she'll be able to live for at most three months, if she's lucky. With surgery she might be able to live for at least another 6 months. And that is if there are no complications during and after the surgery. The hit on the head must have been really hard, for the tumor to grow from benign to a size so dangerous within hours."

It was almost unbelievable. "That serious?" I quietly said.

My senior nodded softly. "I'm sorry I cannot do much, but I promise I'll do my best. Since your friend does not have any family, her friends' support is very important. She might experience speech problems or short-term memory loss in due time. I hope you are well prepared. As a doctor, and as a friend. I've got to go. I have another patient to attend to."

I slowly walked back to the room, and tried to force a calm expression on my face. I opened the door.

"**Hotaru!"**

I beamed at my doctor friend. "Where have you been?"

"Oh… just the washroom." She replied hesitantly.

I thought I saw Hotaru twitching as she went to sit beside Nogi, but that thought was quickly dismissed with Harada's loud voice.

"Natsume and I are leaving for now. We've gotta prep for the wedding. And prep quick too! We'll visit you again tomorrow. Cheer up Mikan!"

Harada came over and brushed my hair. For a while there I felt like she was my big sister.

I smiled politely at her and Hyuga nodded at me. They then left the room.

"I need to go too." Anna started off, "I need to take care of the shop…"

"Of course Anna. Go. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

"Really?..." she looked at me with doubt.

Nogi suddenly chipped in. "I have a plane to catch too."

"Okay both of you go. No worries! Shuuu!" I hushed them out from the room.

And then Hotaru was the last one in the room.

"Mikan." her voice filled the room.

"I'm going to die right?"

She looked startled at my statement.

"I kind of expected it already. I was fainting and blacking out a few times a month. I thought I was just too tired and had not enough sleep. In fact I had an incident in my shop yesterday too. How silly of me." I said softly.

Hotaru sighed. "Don't say that. There's still hope."

I shook my head lightly. "We've seen this before, remember? The same happened to Subaru –"

"Stop it!" Hotaru reprimanded me from saying further. Her teeth were gritting in frustration.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring that up again. But what an irony. Maybe it's karma coming to look for me."

Let me go a few years back.

Before I met Anna when I was ten, I lived with Hotaru and her older brother Subaru in a small shed. They were orphans too, so the three of us worked and barely scrapped through the days without our parents. We didn't have a normal childhood, because our days were spent either running away from angry bakers or working hard labour all-day. We would gather the coins we earn from working and then we decide our meals according to our budget. Life was tough, but I was glad I made it through.

When I was about to turn nine, Subaru nii-san started having massive headaches and sometimes he would vomit and faint. We didn't know what happened until one kind lady brought him to the hospital when he fainted at the road. He was diagnosed with brain cancer. We were under the care of that lady until Subaru nii-san finally died. We cried a lot during his funeral and Hotaru refused to believe he was gone. That lady was Anna's mother.

After Subaru nii-san's death, Anna started to play with us. Even though we were trying hard to overcome the grief and rejected Anna's friendly approaches, she kept coming back. Eventually I was won over. I started playing with Anna and slept at her room. Before I knew it, Hotaru started hating and despising me. She said that I was starting to turn against her. That I forgot all about Subaru nii-san. We fought quite a lot, verbally and physically. Until one day Hotaru finally ran away from home. I couldn't find her anywhere. I remember I cried a lot the day she went missing. I felt guilty for neglecting and not paying attention to her. But it was too late to apologize. The meeting at the hospital was the first in so many years. Anna remembered vaguely about Hotaru.

"So… how are you?" I started.

Hotaru came over and sat on the chair next to my bed. "I'm fine. I pretty much live here, considering I'm constantly on call. Nogi comes over often to visit, but that's about it. Harada is very much like you. Pesky and annoying –" I chortled, "- and Hyuga… he's a bastard."

I was surprised at Hotaru's short description of Hyuga. "Why do you say Hyuga's a you-know-what."

She shrugged. "I don't know. I always get the feeling that he doesn't really care about Harada, but that innocent girl keeps saying that it's otherwise. That he always buy gifts for her and bring her out on dates and whatnot. But from what I see, he doesn't really love her."

"But they are getting married, right? He wouldn't have proposed to Harada-san if he does not love her at all?"

Hotaru shrugged again. "I don't know. It's just a gut feeling. I couldn't care less though. I've said my share. So it's up to Harada whether she wants to listen to me or not. And just so you know Mikan, just because someone did something, it doesn't mean the emotion underlying the action is as true and honest as we thought it would be. Some people do it for the sake of doing it, while some people do it because they had no choice. They might not mean it either ways."

I nodded at Hotaru's philosophy. It is true after all.

"Alright. I need to get going. I need to do my rounds. I'll see you later." Hotaru stood up and straightened her white coat. "Take care Mikan."

**18 March 2012 1900 hours**

I was pushed into the operating theatre to extract a sample of my tumor.

**19 March 2012 0700 hours**

My results for the biopsy came out. The tumour was malignant. The doctor discussed my options. I was given 24 hours to decide whether I want to go on with the surgery or not as it is highly risky. If I go on with the surgery, there is a 50% chance that I might suffer a stroke during the operation and die in there. But if the surgery is successful and there are no complications, I will be able to live for at least another half a year. If I decide not to go with the surgery, I will be discharged and heavily medicated to suppress the growth of the tumor. If I'm lucky, I'll be able to live for another three months. Not more than that.

I immediately chose to not go on with the surgery. I was discharged at 1100 hours. I promised to the doctor I would come back for follow-ups. I did not tell anyone about my decision and left the hospital alone.

**19 March 2012 1300 hours**

"Mikan! Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be in the hospital?"

I pushed the door and slowly stepped towards the lounge in our shop. Anna immediately took off her apron and rushed over to help me.

"I'm perfectly alright Anna. It's too boring staying alone at the hospital. The doctor said I'll be fine as long as I take my meds regularly."

Anna pouted. "You should have at least informed me. I could have gone to pick you up."

I chuckled. "So how's everything? Anything you need my help with?"

She shook her head. "You rest here." she gestured to the couch at the lounge, "I'll make lunch for you."

"Thank you Anna."

**19 March 2012 1330 hours**

"Done!" Anna's voice rang from the kitchen. "Mikan, could you set up the table?"

"Sure!" I stood up from the couch and walked towards the cutlery counter.

"Do you need knives?" I yelled.

"We're having spaghetti, so no!" Anna yelled back.

I lifted my right hand to pick two forks from the drawer, but somehow I missed. I was sure the forks were there, but it felt like I was grabbing thin air.

"Sakura. What are you doing?"

I turned around and saw Andou looking at me over the counter.

"Oh hello Andou-san. I'm just trying to get the forks…"

I managed to pick up the forks, but the moment I took them from the drawers they fell on the ground with a loud clank.

"ARGH!"

My right hand went numb and I grabbed it with my left hand. It felt so surreal. I saw Anna and Andou rushing towards me, but I could only hear faint noises even though I could see that they were calling my name. I dropped to the ground and clasped my right wrist tightly.

**I couldn't hear anything.**

* * *

**Hello there!**

****I hope that this quick update of mine will leave my faithful readers pleased (who will in turn give me more reviews :P).

I promise that I'll try to update as soon as possible before I enter university next month.

That aside, do drop a review by clicking the button down below and tell me what you would like to see in the future chapters!

I'll try to add them in if the ideas sound exciting to me :3

And oh, to** KuroNeko**, I'm very grateful that you've been faithfully waiting for me to update, I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you :)

Love you all! 3


	8. Sliced Mangoes & Vanilla Ice Cream

_My right hand went numb and I grabbed it with my left hand. It felt so surreal. I saw Anna and Andou rushing towards me, but I could only hear faint noises even though I could see that they were calling my name. I dropped to the ground and clasped my right wrist tightly._

_**I couldn't hear anything.**_

**Best Served Cold**

**Chapter Eight –** _of __Sliced Mangoes__ &__ Vanilla Ice Cream_

**02.08.12**

**by: Mich**

My ears were buzzing as I struggled to regulate my breath. I could hear soft noises for a while. The noise started becoming clearer, and then I could hear Andou and Anna calling my name.

"I'm alright. It just… went numb for a while there." I flicked my hand a little bit to help with the numbness but it didn't really contribute much.

"I went to the hospital earlier today and the nurse told me you've checked out. But why you are still sick?" Andou prompted me as he helped me to sit on the dining chair.

"I'll grab another helping for you Andou-san." Anna went off to the kitchen to grab a plateful of spaghetti.

I shrugged. "It's just the tumor thing. No biggie."

Anna came out with quite a big plate of pasta covered with generous amount of carbonara cream and placed it on the table.

Andou took the first mouthful and claimed it was the best pasta he ever had. He initially wanted to grab a few cakes while visiting me, but he said he was lucky he was able to enjoy Anna's pasta. The latter was blushing madly.

"Oh yeah." Andou stopped eating and started fishing for something in his sling bag. "Here. Harada wants me to give you this."

He handed me a golden shiny envelope. I opened it and there was a black half-folded landscape card. The card wrote:

Dear _Miss Sakura and Miss Umenomiya_,

You are cordially invited to the nuptial ceremony between:

** Mr. Hyuga Natsume & Ms. Harada Misaki**

at _**Platinum National Park**_ on the _**20**__**th**__** day of April 2012**_ at _**8AM.**_

This is a garden party and we will be having a Sakura-viewing event after the exchange of rings and vow.

Please do **RVSP** ASAP with Mr. Nogi Ruka or Ms. Imai Hotaru +81-xxxxxxx and +81-xxxxx respectively.

"Wow they act fast." I remarked. "Considering they only decided to push the wedding forward last night."

"Harada may sound and look goofy all the time, but when you're talking about work, no one is stricter than her. Even Hyuga respects that side of her."

"Ohh…" I mumbled.

"So!" Anna started off, "Would you like to be my date for the wedding?"

I was a little surprised at Anna's forward proposal. I grinned cheekily at the blushing girl.

"What about Nonoko?"

_Oops_.

I realized I wasn't supposed to ask that when Anna shot me an angry glare.

Andou waved his hand, "Nah. She's going with her boyfriend."

"She has a boyfriend!?" Anna yelled at a rather high-pitched voice. "How dare she!"

She took the empty plates from the table and stomped to the kitchen.

"Bubbly girl we have here huh?"

I chuckled.

Andou suddenly moved over and whispered to me, "Just between you and me. Why not we become dates for the wedding?"

"But Anna asked you first. And it seems to me that she likes you." I giggled as I whispered back.

"_But I like you."_

I froze.

_Okay okay. Chill Mikan. This is not what you think it is. Calm down._

"So what do you say?" Andou's voice interrupted my panicky attempt to calm myself.

"Uhhh… I'll think about it okay?" I replied hesitantly and he nodded.

"Anyway!" Anna strode into the dining area again, this time with desserts, "Are you going to be my date?"

Andou paused for a while as he scrutinized Anna's face. He then pointed at me with his thumb, "I'm going to the wedding with her."

My eyes almost popped out from its sockets when Anna turned to look at me. I tried to open my mouth and say something but Anna's cherry smile was gone and she looked crestfallen. I didn't know what to say and closed my mouth. I quickly took a piece of sliced mango from the dessert plate and popped it into my mouth.

"Hey!" I started nervously, "The mango is sweet! Good job picking them!"

Anna smiled a little at me before turning to look at Andou. "Good! I was worried this girl will be too busy making desserts that she forgets to get herself a date for the wedding!"

I wasn't sure if she really meant what she said, or that she was just trying to mask her disappointment.

"How about you Anna? Who are you going to the wedding with?" I prompted.

"Oh I'll find someone. Don't worry." Anna smiled at me as she wiped the table.

"Excellent! I shall make my move now then. Sakura, Anna. Thank you for the meal." Andou stood up and bowed at us and left the shop.

Suddenly Anna prodded me with her elbow. "Looks like someone is into you."

"I'm sorry Anna. I didn't mean to –" I pleaded exasperatedly.

Anna looked astonished. "What are you talking about? You thought I liked Andou? Oh no please. No. I was just kidding earlier."

I scanned for honesty in her eyes. "Really…?" I started hesitantly.

"Yes!" Anna exclaimed. "Please Mikan. If there's anything I want for you, I would want you to forget that dumbass in Kyoto last time and start a real relationship!"

_The awkward moment when that person is the client you have been glorifying for the past few days…_

"Okay. You don't know how relieved I am to hear that. Thanks Anna." I squeezed the girl for a few seconds.

"No problem. Have you taken your medication?"

"Oh yeah. I should. Thanks for reminding."

There were a lot of different meds. Colourful ones at that. I popped almost ten different tablets into my mouth and quickly swallowed the bitter ones away.

_Nasty._

"Anna. I'm heading home. See you tonight!"

**19 March 2012 1600 hours **

I reached home and closed the door behind me. I threw the golden envelope on the table and dropped my bag on the couch. I went into my room and started rummaging through the drawers.

I was thinking that since I do not have much time left, I'd record my last few days on my video camera.

After going through and ransacking three drawers, I finally found my quite-abandoned Vcam and checked whether it still has battery. The battery bar was half empty but I hooked it on the tripod nonetheless.

I clicked on the red button and sat in front of the camera.

I cleared my throat and stared at the camera.

**Day One. 19 March 2012 1700 hours. Vlog #1**

_Today I got to know that I have a huge tumor growing in my brain. The doctor told me to not fancy my chances even if I were to go for the surgery, so I decided against the surgery. It's like a ticking time bomb in my brain. Even though I have only three months maximum to live, I would like to appreciate the last days I have with my friends and also finish off the last wedding project I have before I leave. _

_Wish me luck for the next 90 days. If I'm lucky that is._

**CLICK.**

I sighed. I was exhausted from all the happenings since last night. I stripped and threw my clothes into the laundry basket and went into the bathroom. A long hot bath was what I needed before a nice sleep on my comfy bed.

I turned the pipe and water started pouring on me. It was cold at first, but the water slowly turned warmer. I pushed my forehead against the wall. I remembered that barely a few days ago I was doing the same thing and was still thinking about the guy I met so long ago. Never did I expect to meet him again after all those years and I definitely did not expect that I will be in charge of his wedding. That's like… the biggest joke ever. The hookup. And then the tumor. And the deadline of my life.

I laughed bitterly at myself as I punched the wall in frustration. Without realizing it, I started crying. I dropped to the ground. The water was still running heavily.

At that moment that I felt like stabbing myself. To end this pitiful life of mine before nature calls it quits on me. The doctor did say that I will start experience speech problems and motor dysfunction and even memory loss because of that stupid tumor.

And then suddenly, I heard movement in my room.

_I remember locking my room, right? How could anyone get in other than Anna? But usually Anna would yell to tell that she's back._

I switched off the water and tried to reach for my towel. And then I realized I didn't bring my towel into the bathroom with me.

_Shit._

I slowly turned the doorknob and peeked outside. There wasn't anyone on the bed. I hesitantly pushed the door and stepped outside.

"Sakura."

I screamed and ran back into the bathroom and locked the door.

"Who's there? How did you get into my room?"

I heard a low sigh. "It's Hyuga. Misaki and I went to the hospital today to visit you but you were already discharged. We went to the shop and Umenomiya told us that you were at home. Misaki had to discuss some things about the wedding with Umenomiya so she gave me the house keys. Said they are coming over as soon as they are done. It wasn't necessary though. I think you forgot to lock the main door. That's very dangerous you know? But well, you locked your door. Took me a while to figure out which key."

I panicked as I searched for objects to cover the very last ounce of dignity I have with me.

"Did you see – anything?" I stuttered.

"What? Oh. Uh. You probably want your towel." He responded with a knock on the door.

I opened the door slightly and grabbed the towel from the other side of the door and shut it again.

Damn it.

I came out from the bathroom wrapped in towel. I reminded myself to kill Anna when she comes back, for giving our house keys to a guy we barely know.

"I think you should change." Hyuga drawled as he scanned me up and down.

"Get out from the room then." I snapped at him.

He rolled his eyes. "It's not like I'm going to see anything. I've seen enough –" I shot him a dirty look and he cleared this throat, "- I mean, I have something to tell you before Misaki and Umenomiya comes back, so I'll speak as you change."

He turned away from me. "Quickly now."

I hissed at him and rushed to my wardrobe and picked my clothes and started putting them on.

"What were you going to say to me?" I said as I struggled to wear my underwear while keeping the towel wrapped around my body.

"I just wanted to ask about your condition. I heard from Imai it's pretty bad."

I clicked my tongue. "Why do you even care? It's none of your business after all." I pulled my pants up and proceeded to clasp my bra.

Before I could reach for my shirt, Hyuga suddenly pulled me away and almost made me stumble. He stared at me darkly and breathed heavily, "I am responsible for last night, that's why I'm going to care for all I want."

I stared back with the same intensity and I was breathing heavily as well. His crimson eyes were as captivating as ever and I almost lost myself at the search of his gaze.

Out of the blue Hyuga cupped both of my cheeks and started kissing me. I resisted at first and tried to pull away but he kept pulling me back and locked me in his arms. I knew if I don't pull away that very second, I would surely lose control of myself.

Our locked lips were like in a heated argument. There was a lot of pushing and pulling away, and there were bites and slamming involved.

"Stop – it – Hyu - ga" I said between muffled breaths and tried very hard to push him away, but my effort was fruitless.

His hands started wandering around my body and I knew that was the last straw. My hand slowly sneaked to the back of his head and started grabbing his hair. Hyuga responded by placing his arm around my waist and threw me on the bed. Our lips were still locked and we were helping each other to undress.

I was in my bra and panties and him in just his black pants when he pulled away. We were breathing heavily as we stared at each other's almost-nude bodies. I saw his eyes scanning my body and I looked away in embarrassment.

"Why are you so fucking hot?"

I was surprised by his remark and turned to look at him. His tanned body was firmly built and his six packs complimented his slim waist. "You're not too bad yourself." I replied wittingly.

He smirked and looked like he was proud of himself. "You don't say."

He started kissing me again, softer and gentler this time. He slowly trailed his warm wet lips from mine to my jawline and to my neck, where he did quite a bit of work there. He nipped on my skin and whenever his lips touched my sore skin, gushes of adrenaline kick in and it felt so damn good.

He stopped working on my neck and moved to my right ear. He started whispering, "I remember that time when that white wet cloth stuck on your body like a glove. We would have had an enjoyable time if Ruka hadn't called."

The mention of Nogi's name seemed to knock some senses in me as I suddenly realized at how wrong this was. I was driven again by my emotions and my bloody female hormones.

"Wait." I paused. "Natsume."

"Fancy hearing you call my first name." He sounded pleased as he continued nipping my ears. His hands were god-knows-where.

"No. I mean stop. This is wrong."

Hyuga stopped and stared at me. I looked away. We were silent for a few minutes until he finally sighed and pulled away. He grabbed his clothes and started putting them on. I did the same.

"I am not in love with Misaki."

I was startled at his confession, but didn't say anything.

"I met Misaki four years ago, shortly after I bumped into you at the alley. I was a mess back then. I fight and smoke and take drugs. Ruka was my best friend, and still is. But I'm not sure anymore judging from his reaction earlier yesterday. Imai and Misaki were close friends from college, Misaki was her senior in the dorm, so we kind of knew each other from there. Even though I kept rejected her approaches, Misaki kept coming back. I didn't know how but she soon realizes my potential in making pastries and sponsored me to study pastry-making abroad. I finished in two years and met up with her. We hit it off immediately because I was much too in debt with her."

"And that's why you asked her to marry you?" I asked as I sat on my desk. He was sitting at the edge of the bed.

He nodded. "But after meeting with you, and after listening to your story at the shop, I suddenly remembered what kind of person I was four years ago and somehow I couldn't control myself from –" he paused.

"- from?" I prompted.

"From having these feelings for you."

"What kind of feelings?" I was nervous.

He hesitated a little and bit his lower lip. "I don't feel towards Misaki the way I feel for you."

I gulped.

He raised his head looked at me with forlorn eyes, "I think... **I think I love you**."

I froze.

The door suddenly slammed open.

"**Hyuga Natsume! What the hell did you just say?!"**

* * *

Guess what!

My first semester in law school just ended!

I'm having holidays for a month so I'll try to update as soon as possible.

Tho I have assignments piling up so if I'm late, please don't be angry?

Lastly, please please please please leave a review down there please please please with a cherry on top :3

Thank you for tuning in! :)


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